Communication Breakdown
by meburleson
Summary: Annie & Auggie have been dating for almost a year. After a mission, Annie comes home sick and things just get worse from there. Can their relationship survive the test? NOTES: Not sure where this fits into the series. Jai did not die. No Henry files. Danielle did not move. As always, I own nothing: not Covert Affairs or its characters, not Medical Investigation or its characters.
1. Sleep It Off

**Author's note: A very special thanks to EmeraldEyedPhoenix for helping me with this story!**

Chapter 1

"Sleep it off"

Annie got off the plane and, as usual, called Auggie as soon as her feet touched the tarmac.

"Good morning Walker! How was Africa?" Auggie said as he answered the phone.

"It was okay. Mission accomplished as usual." Annie said hoarsely.

"Hey, not getting sick on me are ya?" Auggie said playfully, but was deep down concerned. Annie never got sick. They had been dating six months now and known each other three years and to his knowledge she had not been sick a single day in all that time.

"Must have caught something on the plane going over. I haven't felt well for a couple days. I just need to sleep it off. I'll be fine in a few days."

"Maybe you should see a doctor?" Auggie said, growing more concerned. She'd been sick for a few days and not told him?

"Augs, it's just a cold or something. Nothing a day or so in bed won't cure. I promise if I start feeling worse, I'll go straight to the doctor. I just want to get this debrief over with and go home for a hot bath. I'm so sore from sleeping on that hard hotel bed."

"If you're still sore tonight, I'll give you a massage before we go to bed. When will you be here?" He asked.

"I'm getting into a cab now. I'm coming straight to Langley so I'm not tempted to take a nap. I'm hoping for a few days off after this one. These back to back missions are killing me. It's been a while since I've felt this tired after a mission." She said wearily.

"Wow, Annie, you must really be sick. You're definitely not your usual peppy self after a mission."

"I'm okay Auggie, really. Don't worry. I'll see you soon."

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After debriefing with Joan, Jai cornered Annie in the break room as she got a cup of coffee.

"Whoa Annie, you don't look so good." Jai stated bluntly.

"Well, thanks, nice to see you too. It's just a cold or something. I'll be back to myself again in a couple days."

"I hope so, because I expect to see you and Auggie at my birthday party next weekend. No excuses for not coming this year." Jai said remembering they had both come up with elaborate excuses why they couldn't be there.

"Wouldn't miss it, Jai. I'll be there with bells on." Annie retorted. "But right now, I'm going home."

Annie left Langley straight away without stopping by Auggie's office to tell him she was going home. She was grateful Joan had told her to take the rest of the week off. She was starting to feel much worse than she had when she'd gotten off the plane.

Later that night, Auggie was a little miffed at Annie for not telling him he needed to find his own way home tonight. Ever since they had started dating, anytime she was in town, she was _always_ his ride home. As soon as he got home, he quickly forgave her when he found her vomiting over the toilet in the bathroom.

"Are you okay?" Auggie asked from the bathroom door after stowing his cane, keys, wallet and phone in their usual spot on the credenza.

"Yeah, don't come in, I've got a mess in here." Annie said weakly.

"Annie, if you need me to help clean something up or hold your hair back, I can." Auggie said desperate for some way to help. "Is there anything you need?"

"No, this must be the flu and I don't want you getting it too." Annie said after throwing up again.

"I'm not concerned about me; I want you to be okay." Auggie replied

"I'll be fine. Just need to sleep this off. Do we have any ginger ale?"

"I'll check. If we don't, I'll go to the market down the street and get some." Auggie said, already halfway to the kitchen.

Searching the refrigerator he found none, he couldn't be sure there wasn't any, but instead of wasting time opening the bottles he was unsure of, he decided to just go ahead and run to the store. Grabbing his cane, keys, wallet, and phone, he called to her "I'll be back in thirty minutes, we're out of ginger ale."

Walking down the street, sweeping his cane from side to side, he was grateful for the semi-late hour so that the sidewalks were less crowded. His concern for Annie was mounting by the hour. This was their first real challenge since they'd been together. Everything with Annie was just so easy. She made his life easier, happier, and more enjoyable. Even when she was gone on missions, she was still there. They talked often and she always left one of her t-shirts on the bed for him. Having her scent to wake up to just made his day start off better.

Walking back from the store, Auggie continued to think back to how lucky they had been since they'd started their relationship. They both had feelings for each other from the start (they later admitted to each other), but they had both been afraid of ruining the friendship they both regarded with the highest priority. It had been Auggie to make the first move, asking Annie if she wanted to join him for dinner after work one day. It wasn't until halfway through dinner that Annie realized this was a _real_ date, not just dinner between friends.

Three months later, Annie moved in with Auggie and everything had been smooth sailing since then. At first Auggie had worried that Annie would be unhappy living with him. His blindness meant she had to deal with things most woman did not. First of all, she always had to make sure things were put exactly where she found them and she could never just leave things lying around. Additionally, she had to give him constant verbal cues, and at times, she needed to be patient with him when things took him longer than they would if he could see. Annie never had a problem with any of it. He never had to remind her of anything. She seemed to fit into his life like a puzzle piece. A puzzle piece he didn't know was missing until it was found.

Once he arrived at his apartment building, he ascended the stairs a bit quicker than usual. Unlocking the door, he listened carefully when he opened the door trying to determine where she was.

"Annie?" He called, but didn't get an immediate response.

"Where are you, Walker?"

"On the bed." She moaned, obviously in pain.

"What's wrong?" Auggie asked going straight to her without stopping to put his things away like he usually would.

"It hurts Auggie, my head hurts so badly." She replied weakly in almost a whisper.

"Have you taken any medicine?"

"Yes, I took some Tylenol for the fever, it should have helped with the pain, but it hasn't."

"Just rest. I'll get you a cool cloth for your head." Auggie left for a moment, but came back quickly. Reaching out for her, he sat carefully on the bed next to her. Finding her arm he ran his hand up her arm until he reached her shoulder then brought up his other hand up to her face. "You've got quite a fever." He said as he placed the cloth across her head.

"Auggie, I don't want you to get this."

"Annie, you're not getting rid of me that easy. If it were me sick, you'd take care of me, right?"

"Of course." She said, seeing his point and not really having the energy to argue with him otherwise.

"What do you need? What can I do?" Auggie asked

"Nothing. I cleaned the bathroom. I hate to say this, but you might want to sleep on the couch tonight. I really don't want you to get this and my germs are already all over the bed."

"Okay. I don't mind sleeping on the couch. But I'll be up the instant you need me, just call." Auggie replied. "Your ginger ale is on the nightstand with some crackers. I'm just a few yards away if you need anything."

Auggie grabbed a blanket and pillow from the closet and got comfortable on the couch.

It had been so long since he'd slept on his own couch that sleep seemed to evade him. While he lay there, he thought of Annie. She seemed much sicker than she was letting on. But perhaps he was just being paranoid. Turning on his side, he listened to Annie's gentle snoring coming from the bedroom for a few minutes; this seemed to do the trick for him finally getting to sleep.

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The next morning, Auggie woke to Annie vomiting in the bathroom. "Annie?"

"Yeah?" Annie's voice came from the bathroom floor, hoarse and weak.

"Should I stay home from work today?" Auggie said as he heard her moving things in the bathroom.

"No, I'll be fine. Joan needs you on the Rome case. You know she can't gather the intel without you. I'll be out in a minute."

"No rush, they'll make it if I'm a little late. Are you sure you're okay?"

"Well, I won't say I'm okay, but I will be. I just need to rest. I'll probably be in bed all day."

"Okay, I'll leave some more ginger ale and crackers by the bed."

"Thanks Augs." She said as she opened the door. Auggie reached out for her, putting his hand on her shoulder and started to bring her in for a hug.

"Not right now, I really don't want you get this mess." Annie said as she started walking towards the bed. He followed her keeping his hand on her shoulder.

"I know Walker, I'll be careful. I'll have the housekeeper come by later today to do an extra cleaning."

"Okay." She replied as she starting to get on the bed.

Auggie helped her settle in bed, concerned with how damp the sheets felt as he brought them around her. "Do you need anything else? Should I call a doctor? I can leave work early and go with you if you want."

"Auggie, I'll be fine. I'm starting to feel a little better. I'm just going to sleep it off."

"If you're no better when I get home, you're going to the doctor. I'll call you at lunch to check in." He said

"Okay. Don't worry about me."

"Is your phone near?"

"Yes, right on the night stand. I'll call you if I need anything, I promise."

"I'm going to get ready for work. Is there anything moved in the bathroom or anywhere else I need to know about."

"No, I cleaned everything up and everything is in its usual place." Annie said. Auggie could hear the smile in her voice. Even sick as she is, she still always remembers what he needed.

Auggie made his way around the bed, ghosting his hand over it as he walked to the bathroom to shower and get ready for the day. After getting dressed in black slacks, white long-sleeve shirt, and grey vest, he walked back over to the bed. Finding Annie's hand, he brought it up to his lips and kissed it gently. "I'll see you later, Walker."

 _She'll be fine. Some rest will do her good; don't go all over-protective on her._ Auggie thought to himself as he began out the door.

With that, as if on cue, his phone dinged telling him his driver was outside waiting.

As he left, Annie once again ran to the bathroom leaving all the lights off. She couldn't tell him just how bad she really felt. She knew it was just the flu and she didn't want him to worry unnecessarily. She had chills and a fever that simply wouldn't let up. Her head was throbbing. Her neck was aching. She assumed it was from being bent over the toilet for so long the past few days. As she finished washing out her mouth, she took more Tylenol and went back to the sweat soaked bed.

 _Sleep is what I need. I just need to sleep it off._ Annie thought to herself as she drifted off through the pain.

 **Author's Note: Just like you'd clap or boo for the concert you just sat through, please review my writing as you read it. I'm not above saying, I really do NEED to hear from you each chapter so I know your comments, likes/dislikes, and expectations for future chapters.**


	2. Not the Flu

**Author's note: If you are familiar with other shows Chris Gorham has been in, you might recognize a few characters here. :)**

Chapter 2

"It's not the Flu"

Around 10am, Auggie called Annie to check on her, but she didn't answer. _She must be asleep_ , he thought to himself. _I'll try again at lunch._

But at lunchtime, Annie again didn't answer. Concern threatened to overwhelm Auggie as he considered the possibilities of why she wasn't answering her phone now. Especially after at least eight phone calls and countless texts.

Unfortunately, he couldn't leave right away. The newbie operative, Kyle, he was working with this week had just been burned on a mission in Rome and Auggie had to arrange his transport home before he could go home himself.

Around 2pm, Auggie had everything arranged and Kyle was finally on his way to the airport to leave Rome. That was Auggie's cue that he could leave to go check on Annie. Since calling her at lunch, he had called her another five times without an answer. Calling his usual car service he got home 30 minutes later.

Opening the door to the apartment, he immediately called out to her. "Annie, are you here?"

Without a response, he decided to call her to see if she had went out before searching the apartment room by room in the only way he could. As he called, he heard the phone ringing from the bedroom. From the sound of it, it sounded like it was still on the nightstand where it had been this morning. With this information he decided to start his search in the bedroom. As he walked up the stairs he listened carefully. He could faintly hear her breathing from the bed as he entered the room. Approaching the bed, he ran his hand up the side until he found her arm.

"Annie. Annie, wake up. Walker!" Auggie said, trying to wake her as he grew more concerned with each passing second that she didn't answer him. She was breathing and she had a pulse, albeit slower than normal. "Annie, you need to wake up. We need to go to the hospital." As helplessness overcame him he realized that she was unconscious and not going to answer him. After a moment of, quite frankly, freaking out, he gathered his thoughts and called 9-1-1.

All he knew was Annie was non-responsive to him shaking her and yelling. He couldn't rouse her at all and it concerned him greatly. A cold didn't do this to you and he'd never heard of an influenza being this severe either. Gathering a bag from top of the closet he put a few of his own things and Annie's in the bag for what he was sure would be an overnight stay at the hospital. He wasn't going to chance having to leave her side to come back home for anything.

As he waited for the paramedics to arrive he called Joan to tell her he wouldn't be coming to work tomorrow. She understood his need to be with Annie. He was appreciative of her willingness to work with him.

In the ambulance 20 minutes later, the paramedics are checking vitals and asking Auggie questions.

"Do you know how long she's had a fever?" One of the paramedics asked Auggie. "No, I don't. She's been travelling for work the last few days and just got back yesterday. She said she was sick a couple days while she was gone, but she just thought it was a cold or the flu."

"Any nausea or vomiting?"

"Yes, she's been throwing up the past two days. I don't know about before that." Auggie said wishing he knew more about what symptoms she had presented.

"Did she complain of a headache, stiff neck, or rash?"

"She had a headache, but I don't know about the other two. She didn't say anything about either and I can't exactly look for a rash myself." He said, holding up his cane.

"We're almost to Georgetown University Hospital, is there someone we can call for her?"

"Thanks, but I can do any calling that needs to be done myself." Auggie said almost defensively.

"Okay, just asking buddy. It's a routine question we ask everyone. They will ask you again in admitting."

Once the ambulance arrived, one of the paramedics lead Auggie inside the hospital as the other rolled Annie in.

"What do we have?" A new voice said.

"29 year old non-responsive female, presenting with high fever, headache, vomiting, and rash. Unknown on the stiff neck or confusion, but it sounds like one of the cases you've been dealing with." Said the paramedic who had questions Auggie..

"Wait, what cases? What do you think this is?" Auggie asked aloud, but no one seemed to pay him any attention as they pushed Annie further into the hospital.

"Take her to the quarantined unit just to be safe. She doesn't fit the pattern completely, but best to be proactive in case she does have what the others do." The voice from earlier said to the paramedic, seemingly ignoring Auggie. "Dr. McCabe, go with her and monitor her progress." Auggie heard the person talking to someone else, but was at the mercy of the paramedic for cues where to go.

"Wait, I need to be with her." Auggie said as he realized was not being lead with her.

"The doctors will let you know something as soon as they can. Right now, someone in admitting is going to need you to get Annie admitted since she can't do it herself. She's being taken to a quarantined unit in the ICU." The paramedic told him.

"ICU? Why is she being isolated? What does she have?" Auggie asked frantic for answers no one was giving him.

"I don't know sir. I have to go, there's someone here to take you to admitting now."

As Auggie waited for someone to acknowledge him he felt confused, lost, and frustrated. No one was telling him anything, he wasn't 100% sure where he was, and now he was waiting for some stranger to come take him to fill out countless amounts of forms that he couldn't see to fill out himself anyway.

"Sir, come with me." A voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Ma'am, I can't just follow you. I'm blind. Could I take your arm so you can guide me where we're going?" Auggie stated matter-of-factly.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't realize." She said, embarrassed that she had not paid attention to the white cane prominently placed in front of Auggie as he leaned on it. "Has anyone told you that you look just like one of the doctors on staff?"

"Nope, no one's said anything to me." Auggie said, still waiting for her to indicate to him where she was.

After some awkwardness of how to perform sighted guide, Auggie was lead to a small room. "There's a chair right in front of you. Let's get this paperwork filled out so we can get you to your friend."

Auggie extended his hand in front of him and took a step forward. As his hand met the chair, he walked around it and sat down. "She's my girlfriend. Can we just get this over with so I can see her please?"

"Okay, my name is Eva Rossi. I'm with the NIH. I'll be helping you fill these out."

"The NIH? Why are you guys here?"

"We have an outbreak we're investigating. Annie is showing similar symptoms to some of the others here."

"What do you think it is?" Auggie asked trying to hide his now extreme panic at just how sick Annie might be.

"We're not sure yet. We will let you know as soon as we have more information. But she may not even have the same illness as the patients we are working with."

As they went through the process, Auggie became increasingly more annoyed with the monotony of it all. Annie was alone somewhere in the hospital and he was sitting here answering pointless question after question.

"Has Annie been out of the country in the last month?"

"Yes, she's been to Africa, Europe and South America. She works for the Smithsonian; she's always travelling the world acquiring artifacts for them."

"How long has she been sick?" Eva asked.

"I don't know for sure. She got home yesterday and told me she had been feeling sick for a few days. I already told all of this to the paramedics though."

"Sir, I know this is frustrating, but we need as much information as possible."

"I understand." Auggie said, sighing.

"We are almost finished then the doctor will come to take you to see…er, be with Annie." She said, embarrassed at her mistake.

"It's okay; you can use the words see, look, watch, etc. I'm not offended by these words. I use them as well. I just "see" a little differently than most people."

After finishing with the paperwork, Auggie waited once again for another stranger to come lead him to where Annie was.

"Auggie Anderson?" A faceless voice asked from the waiting room door. As Auggie stood up from where he was, Miles was shocked at just how similar they were. He hadn't believed Eva when she said there was a blind guy here who looked like a slightly older version of him, but now seeing it with his own eyes, the similarities were uncanny.

"That's me." Auggie said, unfolding his cane and walking over to where he knew the door was. He was surprised when the stranger touched his hand with the back of his own hand. Auggie grabbed the stranger's arm and allowed him to lead him from the waiting room area.

"I'm Dr. Miles McCabe. I will be overseeing Annie's care." Miles told Auggie as they walked through the corridors of the hospital.

"How is she doing? What's wrong with her?" Auggie asked anxiously.

"She's been conscious a couple times. She's very confused when she's awake. Her temperature is still quite high and we are working on bringing it down. We don't know yet what this is. We know it's not the flu, but she may have what the others we're treating have." Miles explained as they reached the ICU. "We're at the ICU now; I can't allow you to stay with her for long right now until we know what this is and how it is transmitted."

"Thank you doctor, could you lead me to her bed?" Auggie asked.

"Certainly." Miles said as they made their way through the ICU to where Annie was. "There's a chair to your left, about a meter away from where you currently are. Try to avoid touching her."

"But it's how I connect with her." Auggie said, uncertain.

"I know sir, I'm sorry. I wish I could be sure you won't get whatever she has." Miles replied sympathetically. "I can give you twenty minutes with her. I'll be back after that time is up to lead you back out."

"Thank you Dr. McCabe." Auggie said, grateful for any amount of time with Annie.

"No problem." He said.

Auggie found the chair Miles described to him and pulled it over closer to the bed where Annie supposedly lay. It frustrated Auggie that he wasn't allowed to touch her, to confirm for himself that she was there. It felt like someone was trying to play a practical joke on him, what if Annie really weren't there and they just wanted to see how long it would take the blind man to figure it out. As the selfish dark thought swirled in his head, additional thoughts of Annie crept in as well. She was pretty sick. Sick enough for the National Institutes of Health to be involved. Of course, they had no idea that Annie was CIA and he intended to keep it that way.

 **Authors Note: Just like you'd clap or boo for the concert you just sat through, please review my writing as you read it. I'm not above saying, I really do NEED to hear from you each chapter so I know your comments, likes/dislikes, and expectations for future chapters.**


	3. Flat Line

**Author's Note: Medical Investigation characters will continue to be in the next few characters. I don't own them either.**

Chapter 3

"Flat Line"

Auggie wanted nothing more than to hold Annie's hand. To let her know that he was there. To confirm for himself that she was there. He couldn't get a sense of her being right now. He of course, couldn't see her. This simple act had been robbed from him in Iraq five years ago. He had never seen Annie and yet he knew exactly what she looked like. He couldn't smell her either, the person lying in the bed smelled of sweat, drugs, and chemicals-not at all what Annie usually smelled like. He couldn't touch her because apparently that would risk his own health. The only thing he could do was talk to her and hope she woke to hear him.

"Hey Walker, you gave me quite the scare there. Sorry I haven't been up before now to see you, the doctors are going to help you feel better. Dr. McCabe seems pretty nice, although he sounds really young; he seems passionate about his work. He said there are other patients with your symptoms here too. I don't know how many exactly. Annie, please wake up so I can hear your voice. They told me I can't touch you right now since they don't know if you're contagious or not." Auggie sat next to the bed, knees touching it with his elbows on his knees. His hands were clasped together so that he was not tempted to reach out and touch her. He didn't usually feel helpless anymore, but right now, he certainly did.

As he continued to sit there he listened to her breathing. It was stronger than it had been, but not her normal breathing either. Hearing the steady beating of her heart on the monitor, he wondered just what kind of illness Annie could possibly have. As he listen, he heard other heart monitors in the room indicating that other patients were also still hanging on to life. He again questioned to himself how many patients there might be here.

Auggie heard Annie shift on the bed and hoped that meant she was waking up. "Annie?" Auggie said hoping she was awake.

"I'm not going to tell you again." Annie mumbled.

"What was that Walker?" Auggie asked, uncertain if he had heard her correctly.

"Leave me alone, you're not going to break me." Annie said.

"Annie, its Auggie. You're safe. You're in the hospital. No one wants to break you."

"Auggie? What kind of name is that?" Annie said, looking straight at Auggie.

"You don't remember me?" Auggie said stunned.

"Leave me alone! I'm not going to tell you anything. My daddy will beat you up if you touch me again." Annie exclaimed, getting Miles' attention.

Coming over to her bed side, Dr. McCabe checked her temperature. "105 and climbing." He said to no one in particular. "Annie, I'm your doctor. I need you to focus. Tell me, have you been to Africa lately?

"I don't know." She said. "Can you make the pain stop?" Annie said bringing her hands to her head.

"I'll do my best. Annie, is your neck stiff and sore?"

"Yes." She said as she laid her head down again. "Just make it stop. Please." She mumbled as she once again lost consciousness.

"Doctor, what's wrong with her? Why doesn't she know who I am? Can you help her?" Auggie asked desperate, not even knowing if the doctor was still there for sure.

"Mr. Anderson, we will do everything we can for her. Has she been to Africa lately?"

"Please call me Auggie. Yes she was in Africa last week, I can't tell you any more than that. I don't know what part of Africa she was at or anything." Auggie lied; hoping just knowing she had been to Africa would be enough to help the doctors. He wasn't authorized to tell them anything about the detail of Annie's mission.

"That's okay, I think I know what this is. I need a lumbar puncture to confirm. Will you consent to the procedure?"

"Of course, anything you need. What do you think it is?"

"Possibly meningitis. The confusion, headache, high fever, and stiff neck all point to it. Annie has been the only patient to be able to give us enough information for us to put it all together."

"If it is meningitis, what's Annie's prognosis?" Auggie asked. Miles walked over and put his hand on Auggie's shoulder.

"I will be honest with you Auggie, if it is meningitis; we have to know the source to know specifically what medicine to give her. There are multiple strains of meningitis and they all affect the brain differently. It's unlikely that there won't be some long term effects for her though."

"What kind of effects?" Auggie asked worried.

"We can go over those once we know for sure that is what she has. I don't want to worry you unnecessarily. We're doing all we can do for her right now." Dr. McCabe answered. "Let me take you to the waiting room, or if you prefer, you can wait just outside of the ICU where there are a few chairs."

"I want to be as close to her as you'll let me be. I need to be with her." Auggie stated simply.

"Okay. Right this way." Miles said as he offered Auggie his arm. Auggie kept his cane diagonally in front of his body.

As Auggie heard the swish of the door opening in front of him he heard someone behind him say "We need a crash cart here Dr. McCabe!"

Miles gently pushed Auggie to the side as he quickly grabbed the nearby cart. Another swish of the door and hiss as it closed again. Auggie simply stood where he was. He didn't know exactly where he was or what was going on. All he knew for certain was someone in the ICU needed a crash cart. Worst of all, he had no way of knowing whether it was Annie or not.

As he strained his ears to listen, he heard the chatter of the commotion coming from inside.

"We're going to lose her." Auggie heard a nurse say. "Not if I can help it!" Dr. McCabe said, sinking Auggie's heart. Auggie had no way of knowing if there were any other patients that were female in the ICU or not. He couldn't tell by the chaos if it was coming from where Annie was or somewhere else.

As Auggie listened, he heard the whirl of the crash cart and the pounding of the paddles against someone's chest. And, worst of all, the continued sound of a flat line on the heart monitor. The process continued for several minutes, but Auggie never heard the heart monitor beep indicating life. He only heard the continued flat line. Someone had just lost their battle with whatever this illness was. His biggest fear was being realized as he tried not to face the fact that there was a high probability that Annie had just died or that she might. As he stood there by the ICU entrance he couldn't bring himself to move. The constant signal of the flat line on the heart monitor still blared in his ears, he had to know if it was Annie or not.

 **Authors Note: Just like you'd clap or boo for the concert you just sat through, please review my writing as you read it. I'm not above saying, I really do NEED to hear from you each chapter so I know your comments, likes/dislikes, and expectations for future chapters.**


	4. Fearing the Worst

Chapter 4

"Fearing the Worst"

Auggie waited for what seemed like hours for the news. Still standing, leaning against his cane, where Dr. McCabe had left him, he heard the swish of the door opening, he spoke in the direction of the door, "Please, can you tell me if that was Annie?"

"I'm sorry, what?" A female voice answered startled by his directness. "Are you family of one of the patients?"

"Yes, I'm Annie Walker's boyfriend and emergency contact. Did she just die? I know someone died, but I'm blind, I can't see whether it was her or not." He held up his cane as he spoke trying not to sound as desperate as he felt.

"I don't know the patient's name. Let me get Dr. McCabe. There's a chair to about five paces to your right, if you'd like to wait. Dr. McCabe is with a patient right now. I will let him know you are waiting to see him."

He walked to his right easily finding the chair the nurse had indicated. Sitting down he prepared to once again wait for someone to come tell him something. After folding his cane and setting it beside him he laid his head back trying to clear his mind. _It hadn't been Annie,_ he told himself. _Annie is going to be fine_.

After what seemed like an eternity, Auggie heard footsteps approaching him and raised his head when they stopped near him.

"Auggie, sorry to leave you like that." Dr. McCabe began.

"Don't apologize; just tell me Annie is still alive." Auggie said straight-faced.

"She's alive. We've completed the lumbar puncture, but she's gone into a coma. We have to find out what this is before anyone else dies."

"Oh thank God." Auggie sighed in relief. "How long will the test take?"

"We already have the results. It's bacterial meningitis." Miles told Auggie.

"So what does that mean for Annie?" Auggie asked fearing the worst.

"We're working to confirm the exact type of bacteria causing the meningitis so we can start the most effective course of treatment. For now, we are going to start her on cefotaxime. We're also going to give you rifampin since you were exposed to the meningitis. All we can do after that is wait until she wakes up to see if any damage has been done."

"What do you mean damage?" Auggie asked, horrified.

"Auggie, meningitis is quite serious. Bacterial meningitis is the worst of the three types. It's basically an infection of the brain and or spinal cord. It can cause significant brain damage that can affect personality, memory, balance, and moods. It can also cause blindness, deafness, paralysis, and seizures. Annie did not receive treatment for the condition as quickly as we like people to, so the chance of permanent damage is greatly increased. Right now we are just in a waiting game to see how she is when she wakes up." Dr. McCabe told Auggie. Auggie listened closely; each potential side effect for his Annie seemed like a punch in the gut. "Is there anyone I can call for you so you're not alone with all this news?" The doctor brought Auggie back to the present.

"No, I will make the calls myself. Thank you, doctor." Auggie said outstretching his hand waiting for the doctor to shake it. He couldn't quite describe his appreciation for this man. This man was saving her life. His love for Annie now made Auggie feel indebted to him in a way he'd never felt for anyone else.

After the hand shake the doctor said, "Has anyone told you that we look alike?"

Auggie blinked for a moment as the doctor's question threw him off a bit. "Ummm, I might have heard someone mention something about me looking like someone they knew, but I didn't imagine I would meet the person. I guess I'll have to take your word on it."

"If I didn't know better I would swear you were my older brother or something. The resemblance is a little creepy." Dr. McCabe told him.

"Well doc, I promise not to impersonate you if you promise the same." Auggie smiled for the first time all day.

"Deal." Dr. McCabe replied clasping Auggie's shoulder. "The nurse will be out in a few minutes to give you your first dose of rifampin. You'll need to take it for a couple days on an empty stomach. If you start to have a headache, fever, rash, stiff neck, or vomiting, let someone know immediately."

"Dr. McCabe, what about Annie? When can I see her?" Auggie asked hoping the doctor understood what he meant. He needed to do more than just sit next to her bed.

"Give the rifampin time to kick in. You can sit by her bed for as long as you want right now, but I'm hoping we find a better medication to clear this up for good so you can hold her hand. I am sympathetic to your need to be connected with her, but I can't risk this disease spreading further."

"I understand doctor. Would it help to know that she was in West Africa this week? I don't know any more detail than that, but I thought that might help." Auggie said biting his lip. He knew he shouldn't tell him something like that, but Annie's life hang in the balance, he didn't care about protocol right now.

* * *

It turned out that knowing what region of Africa Annie had been to _was_ the key to figuring out what bacteria infected her. She was put on Gentamicin to prevent the bacteria spread and the dose of cefotaxime was continued.

Annie's fever finally broke close to 6 hours after the diagnosis was made. Much to Auggie's dismay, she did not wake from the coma though. He sat by her bed side, finally allowed to touch her, and simply held her hand. He didn't want her to wake up alone.

On Annie's third day in the hospital, she finally woke up. Her eyes opened slowly as she gradually came out of the three day slumber. Her mind was very heavy. As she awakened, she saw Auggie sitting in a chair beside her and squeezed his hand that was in hers.

The movement immediately woke Auggie.

"Hey, Walker." Auggie said with a smile. "Let me get the doctor." Auggie got up from the chair he had been sleeping in, stretched for a moment and then set his cane in motion to find Dr. McCabe.

A few minutes later, they were both back. Auggie returned to the chair that he had called his for the past three days. He waited patiently for Dr. McCabe to assess Annie.

Annie sat there for a moment waiting for someone to speak. "How do you feel, Annie?" Dr. McCabe said as he began his assessment of her. Annie stared at him a moment, but didn't say anything.

"What happened?" Annie said, but was immediately alarmed when she didn't hear her voice. Bringing her hand to her throat she asked a little louder than necessary. "What's wrong with my voice?"

Suddenly, Auggie caught on. He reached out for Annie's hand, which she immediately took. "Dr. McCabe? Is what I think is going on right now actually happening? Is Annie- Can she-" Auggie couldn't bring himself to say it aloud. Saying it aloud would make it true

Annie looked at Auggie's mouth moving, then at the doctor. Her head felt like it was bobbing up and down in the ocean, it felt painfully full. Her ears also felt full, like she had enormous ear plugs in them. As Dr. McCabe answered Auggie's unspoken question, realization came over her that caused her breathing to become heavier.

Dr. McCabe replied "Yes, Auggie, I think so. Annie can't hear us."

"Auggie? Can you hear me?" Annie said cautiously, fearing the worst.

Auggie nodded his head to indicate that he could, then searched for her hand on the bed, and squeezed it gently.

 **Authors Note: Just like you would clap or boo for a concert you sat through, please review my writing as you read it. I'm not above saying, I really do NEED to hear from you each chapter so I know your comments, likes/dislikes, and expectations for future chapters.**


	5. Waiting Game

Chapter 5

"Waiting Game"

Dr. McCabe held up a piece of paper for Annie to read. Tears silently ran down her cheeks as she read. Auggie still sat holding Annie's hand next to her. He knew Dr. McCabe had come over to Annie's bed, but was not cued into what was happening.

The paper read: 'Annie, you were quite ill. You had meningitis. It has affected your hearing. There might be other side effects as well; all of these could be temporary or permanent. We will do a hearing test to see how much, if any, hearing you have. Any questions?'

After she read the paper she closed her eyes, _maybe this was all a nightmare,_ she thought to herself. _Maybe I'm dreaming and will wake up and everything will be back to normal_.

"Doctor. What's going on?" Auggie asked after several minutes of no one was saying anything. He knew Dr. McCabe was still there and he was holding Annie's hand so of course he knew she was there.

"Sorry Auggie, I forgot. I've just told Annie about her condition. Right now she has her eyes closed. It may take her a few minutes to process this."

"So this is for real, Annie can't hear?" Auggie said trying not to let his panic show. "What do we do next doc?" Auggie asked gently rubbing Annie's hand.

"Yes, it seems so, Auggie. First we will do a few tests to confirm the hearing loss that, while as obvious as it is, we still need to determine the level of hearing loss. We will also do several cognitive assessments and physical tests. There might be additional side effects to the meningitis." Dr. McCabe told Auggie.

"What kind of side effects, Dr.? Will her hearing return?" Auggie sat unable to move. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Furthermore, he couldn't believe that Annie wasn't hearing what he was. He brought her hand up to his lips and just held it. He couldn't be sure she was really with him right now. He knew she was physically there, but anything else was a loss for him. He couldn't tell by her facial expressions what she was thinking or feeling. She could be silently crying and he'd never know it.

"I can't answer these questions until we do more tests. Auggie there are a lot of potential side effects of meningitis and some may not even present right away. It could affect her personality, mood, balance, and memory. It can cause significant brain damage that might cause blindness, deafness, paralysis, and seizures. She's awake and alert right now. That's a good sign. I'm going to ask her some questions right now and perform some basic neurological tests."

"How doctor? She can't hear you." Auggie asked then added "Doc, how will I talk to her? If she can't hear me, how can we communicate?" Auggie said not really expecting an answer. Auggie simply put his head down on the bed next to Annie.

"I have them wrote on a piece of paper for now. Later I'll see about getting a tablet or computer in here that we can type on. I will verbalize my questions for you, she should be able to answer me audibly, but if she's not comfortable with that, I'll have her write the answers." Miles told Auggie.

Miles knew all about having family members with disabilities. His mother was bipolar, his younger sister, Julia, was born deaf, his older cousin, Jason, has been blinded in an accident before Miles was born, and his Aunt Maggie had been lost both her legs in Iraq. He was sympathetic to what Auggie was going through, he had learned sign language to communicate with his sister, but Auggie couldn't do this as easily as he had. He couldn't see Annie signing to him when she learned. Just as Jason had never really been able to communicate with Julia, he was not certain how Auggie and Annie could communicate now. But he knew they would work it out between them. He could see how much they loved and cared for each other.

Miles asked the questions he needed to and had Annie preform the cognitive and physical tasks he needed. He was concerned about her balance and memory. And he couldn't tell yet if her personality or mood were affected, that would come with time. She voiced all of her answers and he thought that might have been more for Auggie's benefit than for his. Auggie sat quietly beside the bed listening with his elbows resting on his knees and arms folded together under his chin. Annie stole glances at Auggie as the doctor questioned her. She got every question about him correct: when they started dating, what his name was, where they went on their first date, and so forth. But she couldn't remember what she did for a living, her nieces' names, or where she had last travelled to. Auggie wasn't sure if she was keeping her occupation a secret because she truly didn't remember it or if she didn't want make a mistake and anyone become suspicious that she was lying. He also wasn't sure why she wouldn't remember her nieces names, this concerned him more than her not knowing-or indicating that she knew-what she did for a living.

As Dr. McCabe continued asking questions, Auggie became lost in his thoughts. Annie was on the other side of the bed performing neurological tasks with Dr. McCabe. The tasks seemed pointless to Auggie, but he had been through them as well. The doctor needed to know where Annie's strengths and weaknesses were, if both sides of her brain were working equally, and her ability to remember pointless things.

Auggie couldn't help but think about how this would all affect Annie. Would she be able to do her job? He couldn't imagine having a deaf field agent would be a possibility in the DPD, especially one whose specialty was languages. She had been plucked from the farm early because of her amazing language skills, would she ever be able to use those skills again?

His next line of thought was a bit more selfish. He thought about how her illness would affect him. How would having a deaf girlfriend work for a blind man? It of course helped that Annie could speak, but how would he communicate with her. Technology? Would they now always have to have computers or something with them to talk to each other? As much as Auggie loved technology, he wasn't sure he liked the idea of this being his only means of communicating with his girlfriend. But was there any other option? As he continued listening to the assessments, he tried not to let these thoughts plague him. Annie was going to be okay, this was only temporary.

"How's it looking, Dr. McCabe?" Auggie asked when he sensed he was coming to a close on his testing.

"Auggie, everything is looking okay, considering the seriousness of this case, just a few concerns. Her balance seems to be severely impacted as well as her memory. There's no paralysis, vision impairment, or signs of seizures. There's significant muscle weakness, but hopefully that will improve over time. I can't tell about personality yet, you might be able to tell more than I can there. We'll take her to test her hearing next." Dr. McCabe said coming over to the side of the bed that Auggie sat on.

"When will we know if the hearing loss is permanent, Doc?" Auggie asked hesitantly.

"Auggie, there's not really a way to know that for sure. But we typically find that if it's going to be temporary, we will start seeing improvements in a next few days. But it all really differs from patient to patient. I'm sure you know that these things take time and there are no guarantees."

"Yeah, I've been in a similar position before, but as I'm sure you can imagine, I didn't get any miracles. I guess that's what we have to hope right now." Auggie said softly. He didn't believe in miracle cures, but he hoped just this once that the medical technology that couldn't help him would be able to help Annie.

"I'll do all I can. In the meantime, Annie is going to be pretty fatigued for a while. She will be on medication for several months. The meningitis could have effects on her for years. It's something she will always have to keep an eye on." Dr. McCabe explained.

"When can she go home?" Auggie asked uncertain.

"I need to keep her here for a least a few more days for observations and tests. After that she will probably have to come back for some physical therapy and if the hearing loss continues, she will need to learn how to cope with that. She might want to consider learning sign language or considering the level of loss getting a cochlear implant or hearing aids." Dr. McCabe said clasping his shoulder. "I'm going to take Annie down to the audiologist down stairs to check out this hearing problem. Do you want to go with her?"

"No, I'll stay here and make a few phone calls. I need to make sure our boss knows what's going on. But thank you for thinking of me." Auggie said surprised at the doctor's understanding of his needs.

Dr. McCabe left and someone came in to take Annie to get more tests done. Auggie helped Annie get into the wheelchair the nurse or someone brought to take her in. Once they had Annie in the wheelchair for the testing that would answer questions they had about Annie's hearing loss, Auggie grabbed his cane and went to call Joan. Before leaving, he turned to tell her he would be right back, but quickly remembered that she would not hear it.

He wasn't sure yet how to tell Joan about what was going on. So far she only knew that Annie was in the hospital with meningitis. She'd visited a couple days ago and shown her support and let him know that he had the next week off and to let Annie know she had the next month off. Auggie didn't question her generosity.

* * *

After talking to Joan and explaining the results the doctor had come up with so far, he made his way to the cafeteria to grab a quick bite to eat. The conversation with Joan could have gone better. She was astonished at how ill Annie was and concerned about the expected prognosis. Auggie tried to explain that they really didn't know if anything was permanent yet, but all Joan heard was the negative. Auggie couldn't let himself get caught up in the negative; he needed to be positive for Annie. She was going through enough right now without her having to see him worry.

After buying a sandwich, bag of chips, and a coffee he headed back to Annie's room.

Once back at the room, he ate his lunch in silence. Annie had finally been put into her own room after her fever broke. He was still taking the preventative medicine and Annie would be on antibiotics for several months according to Dr. McCabe.

As he was finishing up his sandwich, he laid his head back against the wall until he heard the room door open and the lights switch on.

"Hello?" Auggie asked when no one spoke for a moment.

"Oh, hi! A woman's voice answered him. "Sorry, I didn't expect anyone to be sitting in a dark room. I'm just here to change the linens and clean up the room a bit while the patient is out of the room; I guess I should have looked around when I came in." She continued.

"It's okay. I always forget about turning lights on." Auggie admitted.

"Whys that?" the orderly said. And Auggie lifted the open cane beside him. "Ooh, I'm sorry, I didn't know that you're—I'm sorry."

Auggie smiled and said "It's okay. You can say it, I won't be offended. I'm blind. It's a fact. You learn to deal with it." He said shrugging slightly. New people tended to be awkward around him. He was used to it. Well, most new people anyway.

"I guess you'd have to. Well, I better get to it. Do you need anything while I'm here?" She said kindly.

"No, I think I'm okay. Do you know when Annie will be back?" He asked listening to her strip the sheets from the bed.

"Shouldn't be long now. Are you family?" She asked grabbing the trash can and emptying its contents into a large trash can she had brought in with her.

"I'm her boyfriend." He said proudly.

"Oh, wow. How does that work? I mean, isn't she the one that's—and you're—." Auggie could tell the young lady was nervous about her question.

"We don't know yet. But yeah, I'm blind and she might be deaf. But, we'll work it out. We always do." He said more determined than he felt. Truth be told he was scared and honestly not sure how this was all going to work for them.

The orderly finished up in the room and left Auggie to his thoughts.

 **Author's Note: What are you thinking about this story so far? Like? Don't like? Confused? What would you like to see next?**


	6. Deafening Reality

Chapter 6

"Deafening Reality"

Reading what the doctor put before her was difficult. Not that it was difficult to read, but difficult to believe could be true. Of course, she knew _something_ was wrong with her hearing, but to think that it might not return, that it could be permanent. It did not seem possible to Annie. As tears rolled down her cheeks, she left her right hand firmly in Auggie's, needing the tactile support as much as he did in that moment.

She hated when it was time for the doctor to question and examine her. The tasks seemed meaningless, but she was surprised when she failed some of them. Unable to control some muscles, remember some facts, or even walk as she remembered she could.

However, she sat and did everything asked of her by this Doctor Miles McCabe. It was strange to not be able to put a voice with his face. It was stranger to not be able to hear her own voice. He had come prepared with typed out cards with questions and tasks for her to complete. She felt very weak and dizzy-very very dizzy. She just wanted to go back to sleep, wake up and this all be a dream.

She stole glances of Auggie whenever she could. He was sitting by the bed, waiting for her to return to it. It was rare for his head to be down like it was right now. Usually, his head was fully erect as if he could see everything around him. Typically, the only physical sign of his disability were his unfocused eyes and his occasional tendency to tilt his head towards sounds around him. But right now, his eyes were cast downward and even wondering at times and his hands were very fidgety. He looked defeated and lost. She knew all of this was hard on him, without sight, he was missing most of what was happening. She could only hope that Dr. McCabe was verbalizing the questions and tasks for him. Although, part of her, a very small part, was glad that he could not see her stumbling, faltering on tasks and unable to keep balance.

She felt like a hopeless mess. She couldn't remember simple things like her nieces names or a string of random words told to her. But since she had voiced these answers, he would pick up on that. She was also afraid to tell them anything about her job.

She remembered that she worked for the CIA and that she was supposed to have a cover job, but right now she couldn't remember what it was or any details about recent missions. She told the doctor she couldn't remember where she worked. Joan would have a field day with this later. _If_ she were ever able to go back to her job, she knew she would have to take numerous polygraph tests to determine the extent of her memory loss and whether the CIA believed that it was lost, if it remained lost. She hoped it did not. It was strange to have holes in your memory. Like weeks of drunken nights all strung together that left too many holes for Annie's liking.

After Dr. McCabe was finished with his examinations, he told Annie she would be going to take another test in another part of the hospital. She would leave and be coming back in about an hour.

Annie looked at Auggie, he was talking to Dr. McCabe about something. Maybe what had just taken place? As she watched him closely, she was able to pick up a word or two here and there by reading his lips.

Once the doctor left, a nurse came in with a wheelchair. She gestured for Annie to get into it. Auggie got up, put his hand on the bed and ghosted his hand around it until he reached the other side. With on hand out towards her, he was offering to help her get from the bed to the wheelchair to his left. As much as she hated accepting help, she knew she needed it right now.

Placing her hand in his, she slowly brought her feet to the ground the stood up. She tried to lift her feet to walk the couple paces from the bed to the chair, but her feet didn't cooperate, they simply shuffled forward a couple inches. They were patient with her though. They helped her get to the chair with as much dignity as she could. Once she was safely in the chair, she saw Auggie walk back over to the other side of the bed and retrieve his cane and bag. He started to speak to her, but hung his head when he obviously remembered she couldn't hear him. A tear escaped Annie eye as she watched him walk out the door in front of them.

* * *

Annie sat in the room she was placed in and just waited. They had placed headphones over her ears and told her to hold her hand up when she heard something. She simply was not sure what to think about everything going on. Right now there were no sounds coming to her, but she thought perhaps this was due to the pounding headache she had. Her head felt twice its size and absolutely throbbed with intense pain. She felt quite weak and exhausted, like she hadn't slept for weeks.

She was tired of people writing things for her, but she was more frustrated when they talked to her and she couldn't hear them. She really didn't understand what was happening. Three days ago she had just thought she had the flu. Now she woke up in the hospital, extremely disoriented, unable to hear, and had a whole host of other problems. She had ALWAYS been the picture of health. Even as a kid. She had perfect attendance all through school. In college, she only missed classes when she wanted to. All the moving about her family had done, all the different places she had lived-none of it ever affected her amazing immune system. It seemed to adapt and evolve no matter what she did, no matter where she was in time or space. Now it had all caught up to her. Was this some sort of karma thing coming back to get her? All the health problems most people have along their lifetime, all coming at her in one big illness. She shook her head of the thoughts, and immediately regrets that decision as her head began to spin. She closed her eyes and held her head for a moment.

When she opened her eyes again, she saw the red light in front of her turn to green. This told her the examination was beginning. She sat there and listened carefully. She raised her hand a few times, but she really wasn't sure if she was hearing something or just imagining things. Everything she thought she heard sounded distant like it might be miles away from her. Like a whisper at the bottom of a well. She couldn't be sure she was hearing anything at all. She didn't know how long she was there; it seemed like both an eternity and only a few minutes at the same time.

The audiologist came back into the room and removed the headphones. Her ears still felt full, as if she were underwater. The doctor started to leave and Annie got the sense that she was supposed to follow her. She stood up, but immediately felt like the room was tilting to one side as she tried to step away from the chair. Overwhelmed, she fell back into it. Immediately hands were all over her. She looked up to see mouths moving, but no sound coming from them. This was all so disorienting. She closed her eyes for a few minutes hoping that would help the dizzy feeling pass. When she opened her eyes again the audiologist and two nurses were standing there with their hands at the ready. They looked like they were ready for her to faint or something. "What's happening to me?" She asked uncertain if she was heard. It was strange to speak something, or think you're speaking something and not hear it yourself. It felt like a dream. Like all the words she spoke were going into a vacuum she couldn't see. She didn't like it. It made her uncomfortable to not be able to control her body or know for sure that it was doing what she wanted it to.

"Side effects of the disease." The doctor writes on a white board.

"Ready to try to get up again?" She writes.

Annie nods, not trusting the voice she could no longer hear.

She slowly lifted herself out of the chair allowing the nurses to help her on either side. She took a couple slow steps to the waiting wheelchair, turned and sat down in it.

As someone began wheeling her down a hallway she thought of Auggie. She had chosen to voice her answers to the questions Dr. McCabe asked her for him because she knew how important verbal cues were to him, but she wasn't sure she could continue this. What if the words didn't come out like she wanted them to? What is she accidentally yelled at him? Or what if he didn't actually hear the words she thought she had spoken? How could she ever know? If this was as bad as it seemed right now, would she and Auggie make it? Could they really have a relationship with little to no communication? She was having major doubts right now.

 **Reminder: Just like you would clap or boo for a concert you just sat through, please review my stories as you read them. I'm not above saying, I really do NEED to hear from you. Each review is like a chocolate bar rewarded to me for my hard work. This keeps me writing and encourages me. Do you think I deserve that reward?**


	7. Almost Able to Forget

**Author's Note: Greetings readers, here is the latest chapter for this story. I'm trying to update all my stories, but quite frankly, since there isn't a lot of reviews or response on any of my stories, I'm considering stopping my uploads altogether. I started writing and sharing Covert Affairs fanfiction to keep Annie and Auggie alive for its fans, but I don't seem to be very good at it. I don't know if its just me that lacks reviews in this fandom or if the whole fandom has dried up (I suspect its just me because I know other CA writers are getting reviewed). I crave that discussion between my readers that I'm just not getting, for reasons that are unknown to me.**

 **So my task for you, dear reader, if you want me to continue writing, I'm going to need more from you. If I am to continue, I need to know your thoughts on all my stories that you want more of. If you really could care less if I continue writing or not, remain silent. If you think I should stop or continue one way or another, please let me know via PM or review. I don't write fanfiction for reviews, but I do post it here for fans. If fans aren't interested anymore, then I will keep it to myself.**

Chapter 7

"Almost able to forget"

Days passed and Annie improved slightly. The fever was gone, even though the meningitis still affecting her and would continue to for years to come. She felt like a child again. Everything she did was difficult. She felt like a toddler having to learn how to feed herself, walk, and how navigate a silent world. Annie made progress, every day she was just a little stronger than she was the day before, but it was painfully slow for someone who was used to being at the top of her game at all times.

Auggie was there for her the whole time. He helped in any and all ways he could. She was in the ICU for a week after waking up from the coma. Afterwards, she went to a private room.

Her mind felt like it was in a constant fog. Since the diagnosis, she was able to slowly remember some things, while other things were still a mystery to her. Everything was improving in small, measurable increments, everything, that is, except her hearing. Her ears felt like they were constantly full of water, as if she were swimming underwater. The audiologist's tests performed every few days all consistently showed the same results, Annie was profoundly deaf. This meant that if someone shot a gun off near Annie, she might be able to hear it as a soft _bang_. If she was standing near a jet as it took off, it would seem to Annie like a distant echo. Dr. McCabe had told her that it might not be permanent when she was first diagnosed, but as the weeks passed, it became less likely that recovery would happen. Now Dr. McCabe was gone and Annie was left in the care of another doctor.

After leaving the ICU, Annie began seeing a speech therapist. The therapist worked with Annie on how to know how loudly she was speaking, but Annie always mistrusted herself. The therapist took notes and filled out charts as she worked with her. Annie felt like she was in the first grade again while the therapist had her recite letter sounds and read off words from stacks of flash cards session after session. Annie was never sure if she got the words right or not. It seemed so basic, but at times she felt like she was even struggling to read. Her confidence was completely shot. Every now and then, the therapist would give her information about a local school for the deaf or a pamphlet about learning sign language. This only helped to degrade her confidence more. The school was apparently where Annie could also learn coping strategies and daily living techniques. Annie loathed the idea.

During their fourth week of working together, the speech pathologist seemed to be very adamant about Annie needing to learn sign language. She went as far as to give Annie books, flash cards, and videos on how to learn. Annie knew she would be leaving the hospital soon, but she didn't want to accept that this was permanent. She knew that the first month after diagnosis was when her hearing was most likely to improve. She knew that if there was no improvement by then that it would almost certainly be permanent. Dr. McCabe had been clear about that.

* * *

Annie was in the ICU for a week after waking from the coma and then finally moved into a private room once she was more stable. Auggie was there for Annie every step of the way. He rarely left her side. Joan had hesitated at first to agree to him taking the time off. She needed him at work, but she knew his mind wouldn't be on the work if he was there. He would constantly be thinking of Annie. So she'd let him take time off for as long as Annie needed him.

The new operative, Kyle, was home from Rome now and Joan had decided to keep him stateside for now. He didn't have the raw talent that Annie had; he was proving to be more of a challenge for Auggie than she had. Now that Auggie couldn't be his handler, Joan wanted him to stay in the states until Auggie could be available again.

Joan was in daily contact with Auggie about Annie's condition. She was concerned as the weeks passed without any improvement in Annie's hearing. Not only was she concerned for Annie, but she was also concerned for Auggie. Auggie had told her about Annie going silent a few days after waking from the coma. Joan knew how important sound was to Auggie since he went blind. She understood that this would particularly be hard on him.

Eric was there for Auggie as much as he could be. He'd gone to Auggie and Annie's apartment for them. He'd brought them each clothes, personal items, their computers, and toiletries. Eric was concerned for his boss, but said nothing to discourage his vigil over Annie.

"Boss, if you need anything, anything at all, just let me know." Eric had told him the day after Annie had been diagnosed when he had come by with items Auggie had requested.

"Thanks Barber. This has been a pretty rough couple days. We are still waiting for her to wake up. We won't know the prognosis until then." He'd told his friend as they sat outside Annie's room.

"Auggie, she'll be fine. Annie's a fighter. You know how strong she is." Barber tried to lift his spirits.

Looking back on the conversation now, Auggie had truly believed that Annie was next to invincible. No matter what the CIA had thrown at her since he'd known her, she had passed it all with flying colors. She'd survived bullets, fights, poisoning, chases, bombs, and so much more. He didn't believe then that something as basic as an illness would keep Annie Walker down. Now, he knew better. Now he knew she was no more invincible than he was. It was a hard lesson for a solider to learn, a lesson he should have already known from his own experiences.

* * *

Annie worried about Auggie, but week after week, he was her rock. Her constant exhaustion kept her from being able to express her concern. If she were being honest with herself, she was grateful for his consistent presence more than she was worried for him. She knew it was selfish, but she didn't want him to leave, not for a moment. Constant tests, therapies, and lab work kept her busy during the day. But nights belonged to her and Auggie.

During the day, he stayed in the chair next to her bed and was always in contact with her. If she was out of the room, he waited for her, reading or working on his laptop until she returned. Later, after dinner, he would slip beside her and sit in the bed next to her. She would lay her head against his chest, feeling his chest rise and fall with each breath. Feeling him against her body centered her. He almost made her feel normal, as if she were not sick. She was almost able to forget her memory problems, her inability to move properly, or her hearing deficiency.

She did not speak to him anymore. Now she only spoke during the speech therapy sessions and even then, it took some work for her to get started. Never hearing her own voice, never sure if what was coming out of her mouth was what she meant to say and never knowing if her words were clear to him. She knew her silence was hard on him. The first few days, she'd tried to talk to him, but as the silence consumed her, she completely lost her confidence in words.

If a doctor or nurse needed Annie to know something, they wrote it down and verbalized the same information for Auggie. After she stopped speaking, they used touch to communicate. It wasn't a perfect system, but it worked for them. Rarely, if something was really important that Auggie needed Annie to know, he would text the information to her so she could read it and then responded back to him in the same way.

Annie thought Auggie understood why she had gone silent. He never asked about it or complained. She never saw his mouth moving as if he were trying to talk to her. He simply held her.

* * *

Auggie tried to be as supportive as he could of Annie as the weeks passed. But still, this was new to him. Auggie had been here, not exactly here-not exactly where Annie was. But he had an idea of what Annie was experiencing. He'd lost his vision just as suddenly as Annie had lost her hearing. Of course, hearing and vision were different. It was like comparing apples and oranges to compare the loss of them. But nonetheless, it was just as much a loss for Annie to lose her hearing as it had been for Auggie to lose his vision. He could not deny that. He knew this was all hard on Annie, especially considering the illness, balance, confusion, strength, and memory problems on top of the complete hearing loss.

He tried not to tip toe around Annie, but he always wanted to give her what she needed. It was difficult for him to know exactly what that was. She'd gone silent on him a few days after Dr. McCabe gave her the news about her hearing loss and now all he had was her touch. Touch that he never knew with certainty is meaning.

He understood her reasoning for going silent, he never asked her about it, but it made everything harder for him. He couldn't see her and now he couldn't hear her. All he had was cryptic tactile messages, for this reason he stayed in constant contact with her, willing himself to understand her every movement, graze, and touch she passed his way. Annie seemed to understand his need for this, but he needed more.

He feared miscommunication with her now. He was in constant worry that she would be trying to tell him something and he not be able to understand her. He had thought he knew her nonverbal cues well before all this happened, but now, much like she doubted her voice, he doubted his ability to "read" her. He didn't know how to tell her that he needed so much more. He hoped that together they could figure out a solution that worked for both of them.

* * *

On the day before Annie was to be released from the hospital, Auggie was bombarded with information about her care and treatment plan. They gave Annie the information to read over and verbally told Auggie much of the same information.

Dr. Sarah Leonard had taken over Annie's case after Dr. McCade had left with his team to investigate other medical mysteries around the world. "I promise I'll keep in touch." He had told them after making sure they both had all of his contact information.

In her final check of Annie before she went home in the morning, Dr. Leonard spoke with Auggie as Annie was falling asleep after the exam.

"She will have physical and speech therapies three times a week for at least a few months. She'll be on medication until further notice for many of the symptoms and side effects of the disease; we will email you a copy of everything we will need her to take so that you can access the information. And she will need to see a neurologist about her memory and concentration problems about once a week. She isn't cleared to go to work or to drive for at least six months. Will you both manage that?"

"Yes, doctor. We can manage without either of us driving. It's DC after all, not everyone has a car." Auggie told the doctor, a bit annoyed that she seemed to doubt his ability to take care of Annie. He felt her breathing steady and knew she was asleep now.

"Also, I strongly suggest you two both visit a School for the Deaf to see about learning sign language. I know she's been a bit hesitant during her speech therapies to accept that this really happening to her, but it is. She's profoundly deaf and there's absolutely no sign of improvement. She's a candidate for a cochlear implant, but not until her immune system is a lot stronger than it is right now. It's something you'd both want to research to see if it's right for Annie. There's a good bit of controversy surrounding the topic, but many adults that go deaf later in like go that route. It wouldn't be the same type of hearing she used to have, but it's something." The doctor informed Auggie as he sat next to Annie's bed, holding her hand.

"Doctor, what good will sign language do me? I can't see her reply and besides, how will I learn it if I can't watch someone as they try to teach me?" Auggie asked curiously. He already knew a few basic signs from his days in Boy Scouts and the Army, but he didn't know nearly enough for everyday conversations.

"You two will figure out a way. She can finger-spell into your hand, someone can explain how signs are performed so that you can do them, Annie can learn to answer you verbally when you sign to her since you can't see her signing to you, or if sign language doesn't work for you guys, there's technology out there that could help. I think you two will figure out a way to make it work." The doctor said obviously smiling.

Auggie knew that most of the hospital staff was routing for them, but he also knew some of the staff doubted he would stay by her side. He didn't understand why it was him that they thought would desert the relationship, but he wanted to prove them wrong. He knew he wanted to stay by Annie, no matter what. He knew this was hard on her-it was hard on him as well. As he held a presumably sleeping Annie's hand for the final night in the hospital, he hoped that they could make it work. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with Annie Walker, but doubt crept in his head as he remembered that he had not heard her voice in over two weeks. He didn't know if he could live in both darkness and silence in his relationship. He didn't know if touch alone could be enough for him in a relationship.


	8. We'll Figure it Out

**Author's Note: The latest chapter for this story, for your reading pleasure. I hope you're enjoying this story. There's lots more to come, don't worry. And Miles WILL be back. I don't know yet how it will happen, but it will.**

 **Oh, as always, I don't own Covert Affairs or its characters.**

Chapter 8

"We'll figure it out"

Annie was released from the hospital the next day and Joan graciously agreed to come take Auggie and Annie home. Auggie insisted on helping Annie into the car and sitting in the back seat with her. Annie didn't argue. She simply followed his lead. Joan had visited a couple times, but had found it difficult to see Annie so depressed. She seemed like a shell of her former self right now. There was no smile, no laugher-not even with Auggie. Joan wasn't sure how to talk to this Annie. She used text or pencil and paper to speak with her, but she couldn't seem to find the right words to say to her. More than anything, Joan wanted Annie to know that her days at the CIA were not over. That she would fight for her to keep some job there as soon as she was released from doctor's care. When she'd told Annie just that-tears had welled in Annie's eyes, but she did not give any other response.

In the rearview mirror, Joan looked at the couple. Auggie sat next to the window and Annie was leaning against his chest, presumably asleep. Her closed eyes and steady breathing could have been a rouse, but Joan knew the doctors had said she would be quite exhausted for several months to come. Auggie's eyes were closed as well as his head was laid against the back of the seat. His arm wrapped protectively around his girlfriend, Joan knew the two of them would have quite a challenge to face as Annie recovered.

The meningitis would still hold its grasp on Annie for at least six months. And since the deafness seemed permanent, the effects of the disease would be lifelong for her. Joan didn't want to think about the long process that Annie was about to endure, she had seen it from afar with Auggie, as he had went to live with his family in Illinois after his injury. With Annie, it seemed she would be right in Joan's backyard to recover. And just like with Auggie, there would be a permanent change in her as well. She couldn't imagine how her best linguist would get used to never hearing another spoken word.

Annie's language skills were her trademark. They were the reason she was recruited to the CIA. Of course, Joan would fight for her to stay on. Letting her superiors know that Annie was still invaluable, even just translating, decoding, and searching for patterns in any one of the eight languages she knew fluently. They all knew that just as Auggie had been benched from field operations, Annie would also be a hindrance in the field and would not be allowed on official operations outside of Langley.

* * *

Auggie sat in the back seat of the car as Joan drove and became lost in his thoughts. He could feel Annie next to him as she leaned against him in the car, but this wasn't the same Annie he'd met on her first day at the DPD. This Annie was very different, but he still loved her. He loved her with every fiber of his being. He'd fight to keep them together. No matter what, he still wanted her in his life. Joan seemed to understand his need to be with her. She had willingly accepted his plea to work from home on any cases that needed him until further notice. He already had any equipment he might need at home and if something special came up, he knew Barber or Hollman would help him out in any way they could. They loved Annie too, not in the same way Auggie did. But they'd be willing to help her or Auggie out in any way they possibly could. The entire DPD was devastated at the news of Annie's illness. Only Joan, Author, and Barber knew about the deafness right now. They wanted Annie to have time with it before letting everyone know. Barber had been sworn to secrecy, and surprisingly, so far he had kept his promise. Auggie secretly thought that Barber thought that if he didn't tell anyone that it somehow would stop being true.

"We're almost there." Joan told him quietly as she pulled onto the street where their apartment was.

"Thanks." He told her, knowing he wouldn't wake Annie as he spoke. "Would you mind helping me get our bags into the apartment?" Auggie asked, knowing full well he didn't even have to ask, but wanted to show that he didn't expect her help, but was grateful for it.

"Of course, Auggie. I'll stay for a little while to help get everything settled as well. I took the rest of the day off to make sure you guys have everything you need." Joan told him.

"Oh, thanks Joan. You didn't have to do that. Danielle will be over later to bring dinner. I think she's bringing dinner for the rest of the week-longer if I don't stop her. That woman is hard to say no to." Auggie said as he felt Annie stir in his arms and the car simultaneously stop.

* * *

Annie woke as the car stopped. She felt like she was waking from a fuzzy dream. Everything was incredibly peaceful and quiet. She raised her head and looked at Auggie. He looked tired, but then again, he always looked tired after a long day at the CIA. She felt like she'd just fallen asleep as she got back from an extended mission. As they sometimes took a car service instead of her car, when she woke up, nothing immediately felt different-until she spoke.

"Whoa." She said much more loudly than she would have if she could hear herself.

At that moment, she knew something was different-that they were not coming home from work. She knew she had just spoken. She had felt her mouth moving and felt the vibrations of her speech in her throat, but she heard nothing. As realization washed over her, she understood that she had not been dreaming. The last month had really happened. She had meningitis and it had left her completely and irreversibly deaf. To her own surprise, as well as Auggie's, she continued speaking after the first word.

"Oh. It wasn't a dream." She said after a long pause.

As Auggie turned his head in her direction and shook his head, she now remembered everything-the confusion, the exhaustion, the pain, the struggle-everything. She understood now what it was like to lose a sense. As she now looked at Auggie, she wondered if they could possibly make this work. She wanted to. If anything she needed to. She loved him more than life itself. But would it be fair for him to have to shoulder her burden with his own? Would he even want to? Were his actions now led by love or by pity? How could she ever know for sure?

As he brought her closer to him and kissed the top of her head, so enduringly, so simply, she knew, that no matter what-she wanted to give this all a try. She wanted to fight for them. She knew it would be difficult, probably the most difficult thing she could imagine right now, but he was worth it. They would figure it all out-together, as they always had.

Placing her hand in his and intertwining their fingers, she spoke again, this time being sure to enunciate each word clearly, but keeping her tone more normal than she had before. "I love you Auggie Anderson."


	9. To Settle In

**Author's Note: Disclaimer-I do not own Covert Affairs or its characters.**

Chapter 9

"To Settle In"

Once they were all inside their apartment, Joan helped Annie put away some of the stuff, while Auggie turned on the coffee maker and began taking inventory of what they'd need from the store. Auggie knew Danielle had said she would be bringing meals by for them, but they still needed some basics. Since Annie had been at the hospital for weeks and Auggie subsequently by her side the entire time, most things in the kitchen needed replacing.

Auggie resisted checking in on Joan and Annie. He didn't hear them talking, but knew he wouldn't. Annie hadn't spoken again since she had told him she loved him in the car. He didn't expect her to right now. Occasionally he heard the close of a drawer, the creak of the floorboards, or slide of feet across the hardwood. He was worried about Annie right now. He knew she was going through a lot and she would have to deal with it within herself before they could deal with it together. He was there to support her in any way she needed.

Annie still grew weak easily and needed to have someone near her as she walked, but she refused to use a walker or even a cane for even a moment longer than they made her during her physical therapy. Auggie didn't mind her using him as they walked. It threw his balance off slightly, but he wouldn't say a word to her about it. He had compensated for it the best he could as they'd walked from the car to their apartment. Joan had walked in front of them as Auggie guided them both. It wasn't strange for him to be doing this, he knew the route from the sidewalk or their apartment well enough that they managed without incidence.

Without thinking, he walked over to his stereo and put on one of their favorite Jazz records. Heading back to the kitchen he wiped down the counters, made sure any spoiled items were thrown out, and prepared coffee cups for himself and Joan when it was finished brewing. Annie wasn't allowed to have caffeine or alcohol with the cocktail of medications she had to take. Auggie knew this would be hard for Annie, but she hadn't protested or complained when she had been given the information.

As he was finishing up his work in the kitchen, Joan and Annie came down the stairs from the bedroom.

"All done." Joan said for his benefit.

Annie walked slowly over to the kitchen bar and sat down, watching him as he was wiping down yet another counter. She knew he always cleaned by going over things over and over in a grid pattern just to be sure things were clean and free of crumbs that he couldn't see. She also guessed that he was sanitizing more than he usually would for her benefit. The meningitis left her immune system quite low and even the common cold could turn into something serious for her right now. She was grateful for his diligence in keeping her safe. She just wished she felt confident in telling him so.

Joan had sat down next to her, but didn't appear to be talking. She watched both Joan and Auggie for a few minutes. Auggie still cleaning, seemed locked into his own world, he had barely acknowledged that he knew they were there.

Annie didn't want them to not speak to each other just because she couldn't hear them. That wasn't fair to Auggie. He needed sounds and conversations around him to keep up with the world. Annie knew she would have to get over her aversion to speaking, if just for him, but right now, she just couldn't. Outside of the few words she'd spoken in the car this morning, she hadn't spoken for weeks, except during her speech therapy sessions. She decided she should text them both to let them know it really was okay to talk around her-so she did just that.

"Guys, it's okay to talk to each other." She texted them in a group message.

"I don't want you to feel left out." Joan replied as Auggie left the kitchen to retrieve his phone

"That's not fair to Auggie." Annie answered immediately.

"He doesn't deserve silence from everyone every time I'm in the room with him. Don't tiptoe around me." She told Joan

"Auggie is fine with silence if it means you don't having to struggle to try to keep up with our conversation." Auggie answered after retrieving his phone from its usual resting place and listening to the texts. He purposely referred to himself in the third person to show that he didn't like being talked about as if he weren't there. He told himself he would have to remember to have his phone with him constantly while they were home so that he wouldn't have to search for his phone every time she needed to tell him something. The more he thought about it, the more he realized they really needed to figure out a logical way for them to communicate better. Constantly using their phones was impersonal and very distant to him. He didn't want things to always be this way with his girlfriend.

Annie looked at both of them, she knew they both meant well, but this was not what she wanted. She did not want people, namely people she cared about, to treat not only her different because of her deafness, but Auggie different as well. Their faces both looked quite serious as Joan sat next to her and Auggie stood across from her.

"No." She said out loud and began typing again on her phone to both of them.

"Joan, you will not stop talking to Auggie in our home just because I can't hear you. Auggie you will not stop having guests over because I'm deaf. I won't make you live in a world of both silence and darkness." She typed and sent it to the group in her text window.

Auggie's phone read the text to him just as Joan read hers.

"Are you sure Annie?" Auggie enunciated, hoping she was looking at him and that he was facing her direction well enough that she could read his lips.

"Yes." She voiced to him, picking up the words he said immediately. She was surprised at how easily she had read his lips. She knew it wouldn't usually be that easy. As she looked at him, she knew he was deep in thought. She wanted nothing more than to talk it out with him. To hear his voice. To know what he was thinking. He didn't speak again for a few minutes. He stood there still leaning against the cabinet for what seemed like forever.

Slowly he made his way from his side of the counter over to where she stood. He reached out to her until his hand met her shoulder. Bringing his other hand to her other shoulder, he gently turned her around on the stool so that she now faced him. He encircled her body with his arms and brought her into a hug. A way of thanking her. He knew she would get the message.

She returned the hug as they embraced for several more minutes. She wanted to tell him so many things, but the words simply wouldn't come out of her mouth. Speaking had always come easily to Annie. Language and communication were her specialty. She'd never experienced a time in her life when she couldn't express herself. But this past month, all of her communication abilities had been decimated and she was having to learn the process over again. Learning to speak again was no easy task, especially when she couldn't actually hear what she was saying to know that it was what she intended it to be. She hated the speech therapy sessions.

She had not minded the physical therapy or neurology sessions, she knew she was making progress in these areas. She was stronger and more sharp minded than she had been weeks ago. But she had no real evidence that her speech was any better than it had been when she'd first woke up deaf. For all she knew it could be worse. She knew she was already forgetting what some things sounded like, not significant things, but things like the hum of a light, the sound a bag of chips makes when its being opened, or the whirling sound of a can opener seemed like distant memories or dreams now. There were other sounds that she thought of everyday that she hoped she would never forget, things like Auggie's voice and her nieces' giggles. She couldn't imagine a world without these sounds, but now, she had been exiled to a world without them.

She needed to figure out a way to communicate with Auggie, a way that worked for both of them. She knew he didn't want to constantly have a phone between them. If she were honest with herself, she didn't want that either. The more she thought about it, the more learning sign language seemed to make sense. She was a gifted linguist, so theoretically, sign language should come as easily to her as any other language she learned had, but how would this help she and Auggie communicate. Could he learn sign language with her? Would he be willing to? She didn't hesitate to tell herself he wouldn't mind at all. She knew he would do anything for her. But how would that be for him. He wouldn't be able to see her signing to him. It didn't make logical sense for a blind man to learn sign language. It wasn't a question of would he, but a question of could he. Could he learn sign language, of course he could, but could it be useful for them to use with one another. How could they make it work for them? Would they always have to be touching as they signed to each other? Would he sign to her and she voice her answers to him? How would she know if she said what she wanted to say to him when she responded? How would he know where she was in the room to be able to sign to her? There seemed like there were so many technical aspects of this idea that she honestly wasn't sure it could work. But right now, as she was held in his embrace, she didn't care. She would do whatever it took to make sure they were able to communicate.

* * *

A few hours later, Annie and Auggie sat on the couch after Joan had left after lunch. To her surprise, Annie's phone began vibrating in her pocket, a sensation she had not felt in a month. Someone was calling her. She looked down at the display to see Danielle's name on the screen. She was perplexed at why Danielle would be calling her. Had she forgotten Annie couldn't use a phone to talk anymore? Was it an accident pocket dial? Or was her sister in some kind of trouble and this was her way of alerting her? Annie honestly didn't know what to make of it. In a split second decision, she thrust the phone into Auggie's hand, hoping he would understand that she needed him to answer the call.

As she passed the phone to him, he was momentarily confused, but she saw the moment he realized what was happening as he slide his finger over the screen to answer the call. Bringing it to his ear he spoke into the receiver. Annie watched mesmerized as she saw her boyfriend speaking and knew words were coming from his mouth, but she couldn't make out a single word. She watched his lips carefully, willing herself to just understand some of it, but it seemed impossible. She knew his lips better than anyone and yet it seemed at that moment they could have been anyone's for all she could understand from them. It frustrated her. As he brought the phone down from his ear, he seemed to be momentarily unsure what to do. It was obvious that he had something to ask or tell her, but it that moment he seemed lost in how to convey the message to her. In the same instance, she wasn't sure what he could do either. He had her phone, so he couldn't use his own to message her, paper and pencil were not a blind man's friend, and she couldn't hear his spoken words. But, as always, Auggie found a way. Grabbing his phone, he found the notes application and typed the message, then he handed the phone in her direction, waiting until she took it from her hand to release it.

"It's Danielle. She wants to know if the girls can come with her tonight. I told her it was up to you. We can wait for another night if you want to."

Annie quickly typed back. "It's fine, they can come. Has Danielle told them yet?" She asked.

Auggie listened briefly to the message she had typed and shook his head to indicate Danielle had not told her nieces about Annie being Deaf. "She didn't know how to tell them." Auggie typed, again passing it back to Annie.

"They'll find out soon enough." She typed in the application and placed it back in his hand. Auggie continued his conversation with Danielle and handed Annie's phone back to her when he was finished. He picked his own phone back up and began composing a text to her.

"She told me to apologize about calling you. She forgot. I gave her my number so she can call me next time she needs to tell you something. I told her she could text you too."

"Thanks Auggie. I don't know how I would get through this without you." She texted and wrapped her arms around him when she thought he'd finished listening to the text.

"Are you sure you're up for so many visitors your first day back home?" He texted her after their embrace ended.

"I'll be fine. What time will they be here?" She texted to him.

"7." He texted back. "You have time to take a nap if you need it." He added after checking his watch to see that it was only 4 in the afternoon.

"I'll go lay down for an hour or so then. Can you wake me up if I'm not up by 5:30?" She texted him.

"Of course." He texted back immediately after hearing the text.

She sat for another few moments and he sensed she wanted to ask him something. He stood and extended his hand towards her, she took it, and used his height and strength as leverage to get off the couch. Once she was standing, she wobbled for just a second, but Auggie's arm was wrapped around her waist instantly, steadying her.

"Thanks" she said quietly.

He side stepped the table in front of the couch, but kept his arm tightly around her waist as they walked together through the apartment, up the stairs and into the bedroom. He let her lean against him as they walked, knowing she needed his strength. As his shins bumped gently against the bed, he felt her leave his side. Assuming she had crawled onto her side of the bed, he bent down, found her arm and ran his hand up to her face. He bent over and kissed her forehead and turned to leave her to go to sleep.

As she slept, Auggie checked emails, did a few housekeeping things around the apartment, and checked in with Barber and Joan on a couple missions he would be working on from home while Annie was recovering. He checked his watch frequently to make sure he didn't let her oversleep.

As he thought about it, he wasn't sure how to wake her. Before all this happened, he knew she would have been awakened by a traditional alarm, but that wouldn't work for her now. He could rock her awake, but he knew from experience that being jolted awake by someone shaking a sleeping person did not work so well for a newly disabled person. In the hospital, the nurses and doctors had been poking and prodding at her so much that sleep had only happened in short bursts. He made a mental note to look up information about alarms that deaf people might use when he got back on his computer later.

At 5:20, he began listening closely for sounds of Annie waking on her own, when none came over the next five, then ten minutes. He put the book he had been reading on the table in front of him and made his way to the bedroom. He'd thought while she slept on how to wake her and he really didn't know any other way other than by touching her. He didn't want to scare her awake, but he couldn't call her name and doubted light would wake her automatically, especially since she had went to sleep while the sun was still shining in their room.

Making his way over to the bed, he felt his way to her side of the bed again. He felt the bed to make sure he wouldn't sit on her when he sat down.

He sat down carefully and ran his hand along her sleeping form. He almost didn't want to wake her, she seemed to be sleeping so peacefully. When he placed his hand on her shoulder, she moved instantly. Not quickly or as if she were startled, but enough that he knew his subtle touch had surprisingly woken her. He brought his hand to her face and felt a slight smile on her lips. It was the first time since she got back from that mission in Africa that he'd been able to perceive this expression on her face.

He wished, not for the first time, that he could see her face. He knew that anything he could imagine as Annie Walker couldn't compare to what she actually looked like. Even now, as he knew she'd lost some weight and looked weak and unwell due to the meningitis, he knew she would be gorgeous.

He felt Annie move beneath his hand as she turned her body towards him. She took in his appearance, he looked exhausted and worn down, but he was still her Auggie. He ran his hand down to her shoulder and brought his other hand up to her other shoulder. If she hadn't known better she would have sworn he was gazing right into her eyes.

Just sitting up in bed felt weird, she'd never just been one to take naps or lay around in bed. But to her surprise, it wasn't bad. Of course, she'd rather be up on the latest mission Joan needed her on, but just taking a breather and relaxing was nice. She wanted to tell Auggie how much she was appreciating everything he was doing for her. His patience, compassion, and understanding throughout all of this wasn't unexpected at all, but it was a comfort to have. At that moment she just wanted to tell him that without having to have a machine do it for her. But the words wouldn't come. She opened her mouth a couple times to speak, but knew nothing came from them.

Suddenly, an idea came to her mind. She DID know one sign that she was almost certain he would know. She took Auggie's hand and placed her hand into it as she extended her thumb, pointer, and pinky fingers as her middle and ring finger rested against her palm. He explored the symbol gently with his fingers as she continued holding the hand position, she watched as at first his eyebrows furrowed together. Moments later, a smile lit on his face as understood what the hand gesture was. He made the same symbol and held in up toward her.

He brought his hands up to her face and brought their heads together. In that moment, despite his blindness and her deafness, they both knew they could make this all work somehow.


	10. Communication Bridges

**Author's Note: Disclaimer-I do not own Covert Affairs or its characters.**

Chapter 10

"Communication Bridges"

Before leaving the bed after Annie's nap, they both seemed to come to the same conclusion as sitting there together. They COULD make sign language work for them. They weren't sure yet all the details and if it would be a permanent solution, but they didn't have to only use their phones to communicate with each other. They had a way of communicating just through touch and their hands. There would not be any real conversation about it just yet and Auggie didn't dare plan to mention it to Danielle or Joan. He felt it was a private thing between them for now.

Danielle and the girls arrived around 6:45 that night with dinner and a movie for the girls to watch. As they ate dinner, Annie watched as everyone conversated around her. The longer the conversation lasted, the deeper Auggie's frown became. She knew he wasn't talking much, she was watching him as she always did. But the girls and Danielle never seemed to stop talking, but they never directed the conversation towards her. Annie and Auggie sat with their hands together much of the dinner, neither of them wanting to relinquish contact with the other.

Annie's nieces were full of questions about Annie's condition. Of course, they tried raising their voices and yelling at her when they first found out that she couldn't hear them. When Annie still didn't answer whatever burning question they had for her, they would run off and ask either Danielle or Auggie, leaving Annie just sitting on the couch.

As Danielle had been putting the finishing touches on dinner, the girls had begun twenty questions with Auggie. They asked everything from will she have to learn Braille like he did?, would she get hearing aids?, would she have to quit her job at the Smithsonian?, how did she hear her alarm in the morning?, can she still hear music?, and so forth. He answered all of their questions to the best of his ability, but he hated that Annie was completely left out of this process. He sat next to her on the couch and answered each of their questions as they bounced around their apartment.

During the dinner conversation, the girls were more interested in talking about whatever was going on at school. Katia told about a little girl who came into her classroom for a few hours a day that was Autistic. She told them that the little girl was in special classes too, which was why she wasn't in her classroom all day. She wanted to know if Annie would have to take special classes too. Auggie simply answered they weren't sure yet, despite the fact that he was pretty sure she would be taking sign language classes.

After dinner the girls sat on the couch to watch the Disney movie they had brought to watch. Auggie immediately went to work setting up the movie to play both closed captions for Annie as well as descriptive audio for himself. He didn't think either Annie or himself would actually be paying any attention to the movie, but he wanted to make it a point to show that he and Annie could be included in their movie watching experience. He didn't know if they would be annoyed by the voice constantly speaking descriptions throughout the movie or the streaming captions at the bottom displaying what was spoken, but at that moment he didn't care.

Neither of the girls complained or said anything about the audio or caption variations as they watched the movie. It didn't seem to faze them as they sang along to the obvious familiar songs and script of the movie.

As the girls watched the movie, Annie and Auggie worked together, to Danielle's disapproval, to clean the kitchen. Together as always, they completed the task in no time. Auggie listened carefully to Annie for signs that she was getting tired, but none came. They cleaned the stove off, washed and dried the dishes, and sanitized the counters and table. As they worked, Auggie was never more than an arm's length from Annie.

At one point while they were doing the dishes, they became a bit playful as Annie picked up a handful of bubbles from atop the dishwater and quickly plopped it on Auggie's nose before he realized she had removed them from the sink. Auggie stood stunned for a moment completely unsure how to respond. Typically he would respond by retaliating to such an action, but with Danielle and the girls there, he wasn't going to go about tossing bubbles around the kitchen. The next sound he heard was the most beautiful sound he had heard in years-Annie laugher. It had been so long since he'd heard it. It was exactly as it had always been. Annie voice, in the rare times he had heard it since she returned from Africa was hesitant and unconfident, but her laugher was as pure and joyous as it had always been. He smiled and extended an arm toward her, as she took it, he brought her into a hug and then kissed her, making sure their noses touched so he could share the bubbling substance with her.

After all the cleaning was finished, Auggie and Annie joined Danielle and the girls on the couch to watch or listen to the movie. Annie wasn't sure she liked reading throughout the movie, but she knew she would have to get used to it. It wasn't that she was opposed to reading subtitles during a movie; she'd done it all the time when she was younger and was watching foreign films. This had helped her learn words that might not have been in a textbook as she was learning one language or another throughout her life, but the idea that from now on every movie she watched had to be captioned annoyed her. Not having the choice to just listen to a movie, to just have it on in the background as she did other things. It all saddened her, which then frustrated her because all these emotions were coming about because of a children's movie.

Auggie was completely confused by the time they sat down to watch the movie. He had not watched many kid movies as an adult and he found it hard to understand why a snowman was singing and dancing or how the rocks turned out to be trolls. He stopped asking questions when Chloe seemed to be annoyed by his question about why the reindeer didn't talk, but the snowman could.

As Danielle and the girls left after the movie ended, Auggie went and saw them out. After locking up, Auggie wanted nothing more than to crawl into bed. He stopped mid step and suddenly had a thought about where he should sleep. He knew that while she'd been in the hospital Annie had wanted him close to her, but now that they were home, would she want to still share their bed. He didn't want to push her into even sleeping next to him before she was ready. He knew that when he first went blind he had felt unworthy of any woman's attention. Of course, it was different for Annie, already having a significant other who was with her no matter what, but he was still unsure.

Annie seemed to sense this hesitation and took the confusion right out of the equation for him. She walked over to him and took his hand, pulling him gently towards the bedroom with her. Once they were both in the bedroom they went about their usual preparations for bed. Annie stumbled twice in the bathroom, but hoped Auggie didn't hear her. When they were both ready for a good night's rest, Auggie wrapped his arms tightly around Annie as she cuddled next to him. Neither of them needed words to know that this was what they both needed.

* * *

Annie decided the next day that she wanted to go to the School for the Deaf to at the very least get information from them. Auggie enthusiastically agreed to go with her and made the preparations for them to go the following week. He seemed just as interested in learning how they might use sign language to communicate as she was.

Their appointment was to be the next day and while they had gotten a routine planned for themselves, it seemed they were never really alone to make sure it could work for them. During the last week they had had very little alone time together. If Danielle and the girls weren't there, then Barber, Hollman, or Joan was there. Both Annie and Auggie were grateful for their friends support, but they were each feeling a bit smothered and just wanted things to go back to, well, a relatively normal state.

Joan and Danielle each helped make sure Annie got to all of her appointments, which Auggie accompanied her to, even if he was just going to wait for her. They had each wanted to join them on their trip to the School for the Deaf, but Auggie had firmly declined their offer of help after a long discussion, via text, the night before with Annie about it.

Auggie prepared for the trip by doing what he did best. Creating a piece of tech Annie would use throughout the trip. He'd been reluctant to bring in even more technology between them, but in this case, they would need the help in such a public place. The device looked like a basic PDA, but would type out anything spoken around Annie within a three foot radius with turned on. The device could even distinguish between different voices and would indicate who had spoken as it typed. Eventually he would make it to where the device could save voices so it could tell her specifically who had spoken as well as what they said.

Annie was thrilled with the PDA when Auggie showed it to her. They spent the next thirty minutes testing it out from different ranges in the apartment. He showed her how to change the settings and how to turn in on and off. She could use the device as a notepad to respond to other people if she chose not to voice her answers as well. When it was time to head to the school, Auggie fell back on his usual method for getting around and called a car service.

As they arrived at the school, Annie was amazed at how many people were around. She was mostly disappointed to see that everyone she saw learning seemed to be children. She had looked over the videos and books that her speech therapist had given her about sign language and had already picked up a few basic signs. She was quite intrigued to discover that there were different types of sign language. She had been assuming it would be like Braille had been for Auggie, learning a sign or symbol for a given word in the English language or letter of the alphabet. And while this was the case, that there are gestures for English words-she discovered that there was a lot more to it than that. She was amazed to find out that different version of sign language might say things differently-that there was varying grammatical structure to the various sign languages. The more she learned, the more eager she became to learn more. She found herself growing excited about the prospect of learning a new language.

But now that she was there, seeing that all of the students were children discouraged her. She didn't want to be treated like a child here or anywhere else. As they waited for the headmaster of the school, after being welcomed by the secretary, Ms. Hillson, she wanted to talk to Auggie and get his opinion of the place.

Getting her phone out she typed to him: "What do you think?"

After listening to the text through his Bluetooth he texted back. "I'm not sure. It's not like I can exactly see what's going on. It's really quiet here."

"Wow, really? Why would it be quiet? There are tons of children in the classrooms we've passed; I'd say at least 10-15 in each room."

"Annie, they don't need to talk, they communicate through the gestures and facial expressions of the language we're here to learn more about." He explained as he'd been doing his own research on sign language.

"I guess I didn't think of it that way." She texted back.

Before the conversation could continue, the headmistress, Mrs. Stapleton came into the office. Auggie felt a little awkward, knowing she was signing in front of him. He had placed his cane beside him when they sat down in her office and now he wasn't sure if it had been seen. To Auggie's relief, she spoke as she signed.

Annie was initially so mesmerized by the flow and rhythm of following the headmistress' hands as she spoke to them that she forgot to turn on the PDA so that she could actually know what was being said.

Remembering to turn it on, she caught part of the conversation.

"…get you started right away on learning the basics. We've looked over the information that the hospital sent us about your case and I'll admit it will be a challenge to teach you, Auggie, was it? But it can be done. You will have to learn signs by touch or verbal instructions unless you have some vision that can help you see someone signing in front of you."

"No, I don't have any sight that could help us with that." Auggie answered.

"It is a much slower process than learning through sight, but we have ways of teaching you nonetheless. As to how you and Annie will communicate, that is for you to decide. Obviously Auggie cannot see your signs across a room, Annie, but if you are close to each other, you can sign into his hands. I understand you've decided to stop speaking, Annie. That fact will also complicate things for you two. If you are across the room from him and he wants to sign to you, you'll have to have some way of always letting him know whether you can see him or not, otherwise he won't know you're not seeing what he signs. It will all be in how you guys work it between the two of you." As Auggie listened he was relieved that she at least was prepared for his blindness and wasn't as shocked by it as he'd thought they might have been.

"I learned the manual alphabet in Scouts years ago, I think I remember most of it. I've done a bit of my own research and I know that there's a different sign language for people who are deaf and blind, should we look into that as well?" Auggie asked.

"I'm impressed with your knowledge Auggie. You could learn that if you feel it will work for both of you, but for Annie it will be best if she learns American Sign Language, or ASL as most people call it. That way she can communicate with other deaf people. Given your circumstances, it's completely understandable if you can't learn ASL yourself."

After saying this the headmistress paused for several minutes. In fact the timespan lasted so long that Auggie wasn't sure if she was still there or not.

When she spoke again, she spoke from Annie's right. "How are you feeling about everything we've discussed Annie?"

Auggie listened to Annie typing wondering what she might be saying, he knew she was typing on the PDA, so he wouldn't get the answer himself. Instead she would show the typed message to the headmistress, whether she would read it aloud for him was yet to be seen.

A few moments later, he got his answer.

"It takes years to become fluent, but the more you use it and acclimate in with others using it, the easier it will come to you." She answered.

Annie thought about this and she should have known the answer. It was the same as with any language. Immersing yourself in it was the best way to learn it and the fact of the matter was, she didn't have a choice. The question remained how much Auggie would be able to learn along the way.


	11. Learning Curve

**Author's Note: I do not own Covert Affairs or its characters.**

Chapter 11

"Learning Curve"

Annie dove right into her American Sign Language studies. She bought books, created flashcards, watched and practiced along with videos, and went to the School for the Deaf three times the week after first meeting the headmistress. Auggie was by her side the entire time, listening to the videos, feeling her mimicking the motions from the screen. Every once in a while, Annie would catch Auggie trying to sign along with the videos if he thought the audible description of the sign was adequate for him to attempt it. She occasionally corrected his movements, but for the most part, Auggie was simply sitting next to her as she worked.

Annie surprised herself by being able to work for hours at a time without getting too tired. She found herself almost excited to be learning a new language. She had not expected ASL to be so different from English. Before now she had simply thought every word in the English language would have a different sign with it. Now, she knew that, just like any other language, ASL had its own grammar, structure, mechanics, and so forth. Of course, it used the same words and meaning as English, but she was fascinated with the whole experience of it so far.

They went to the School for the Deaf on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday the follow week. Each time they went to the school, Auggie went with Annie. While Annie worked with a group of advanced level students, Auggie worked one on one with one of the teachers there. By the end of the first three hour session, Annie was able to say hello and goodbye, sign what her name was, tell about her family and their names, talk about wanting to go some places and knew several food, animal, and job signs. Auggie, on the other hand, was still trying to master just some basic words and understand the various hand shapes that signs used. He knew yes, no, please, thank you, come, go, hello, and help by the end of the first day at the School for the Deaf.

Annie felt awful for leaving Auggie so far behind her. She knew he wanted to learn too, but this first week she craved to know more and more the longer she spent working on it. The process was much slower for him, she knew. She knew she should do more to help him, but like all of her linguistic endeavors in the past, she found it difficult to direct her mind from the studies of the new language.

* * *

Auggie practiced the signs over and over, but was never 100% sure he was doing them correctly. He grew frustrated quickly throughout the process and just wished he could talk to Annie in the way they used to. He missed her voice so much. The silence that his world had become was almost maddening for him. He kept music playing constantly, just to have some kind of noise. He knew Annie was aware that he played music, but she never indicated that she was sad about not being able to hear it.

Even when he was around other people, the silence that permeated from Annie couldn't be made up for with other conversation. He hoped soon enough Annie would be comfortable talking to him again, if even just in their home. He could tell she was miles ahead of him already with learning sign language, he had known she would be, but that didn't stop him from getting frustrated. She was Annie Walker; she specializes in languages, of course learning a new language wouldn't be hard for her. Nonetheless, Auggie had hoped he would catch on a little faster than he seemed to be. He knew multiple languages, even the challenge of this language being completely visual, he had really thought he could do better. He had known the manual alphabet as a kid in boy scouts, but when practicing them with the instructor, she informed him, bluntly, that his memory of the letter formations was anything, but perfect. She explained to him that mastering the letters would be important to learning other signs because those basic hand signals that make up the letters and woven within the language in many other ways.

He tried to retain it all. He tried to practice it. But practicing seemed pointless when there was no one to tell him whether he was doing it right or wrong. He didn't want to get in the habit of signing things incorrectly. He tried very hard not to get frustrated with Annie, but she seemed wrapped in her own little world. Even when they were sitting next to each other, she seemed distant. He nearly constantly felt the air moving around her where she was undoubtedly signing away things he could not see or understand. It was obvious to him, simply by the speed at which the air flowed around him, that Annie's signing was already at a conversation level. He couldn't bear the thought of stopping her momentum just to take fifty steps back to help him with just the basics.

* * *

Annie noticed Auggie practicing the alphabet at times and felt proud that he was doing something so meaningful to help meet her halfway to where she was. She knew this process was hard on him, she didn't expect him to ever be able to be as fluent as she would be able to be in sign language. She often caught frustrated looks on his face that concerned her, but she wasn't sure how to address them. She knew it was unrealistic of her to think sign language would be their primary means of communication, but it helped just knowing he was trying.

Annie knew full well that she was going to have to start talking to Auggie, even if they did use sign language, he would never be able to see her signs unless they were touching on another, and that simply wasn't possibly one hundred percent of the time. If he signed to her from across the room, it would just be simpler for her to answer him verbally.

She almost hated herself for trying to continue a relationship with him when she didn't talk to him. She knew that sounds, words, and conversations were important to him. He could no longer rely on body language, facial expressions, or posture to determine a person's meaning behind what they said. Now, here she was forcing him to have no verbal communication right now.

It was all aggravating for him, she knew, but it was also the same for her. She missed sound so much. Simple things like the ding of the microwave, the roar of a fan, rain falling outside, car passing by, birds singing their song, and music. She missed music a lot. She knew Auggie played Mingus almost constantly, she often felt the vibrations through the apartment. She never commented that she knew it was playing, she did not want Auggie to think she was sad that he played it or anything. It was quite the opposite, she was grateful to Charles Mingus for being able to give Auggie something he very much needed right now. She enjoyed being able to feel the gently pulsations the soft music sent throughout the room. They could be felt best from the floor as she walked, the closer she was to the living room, the more she felt them. She was glad that Auggie could have the music instead of the silence her world had become.

* * *

On Saturday night as they had sat down to eat dinner, Annie noticed that Auggie simply was not himself. His shoulders were slouched, his head was down, and he had his hand around his plate as he ate his dinner. It appeared to Annie as though Auggie's confidence was somehow lower than usual. She realized then that she had not felt the vibrations of his music in the last day or so, nor had she seen him working on his laptop.

They had yet to really solve their communication problem yet, so they still used their phones as the main means of communication between them. Annie still used the PDA Auggie had made for her from time to time, but Auggie still needed to add a feature that could read aloud the text reply before that could be used between them.

As she continued to watch Auggie, a thought formed in her head. She picked up her smartphone that was now never far from her and texted him.

"Are you depressed Auggie?" She asked, watching him closely as she knew his phone would read off the text to him.

He replied immediately.

"What do you think?" He answered coldly.

As Annie read the text, Auggie got up from the table with his plate still half full. He deposited his dishes in the sink and walked over to the couch.

"We need to talk about this." She replied via text. She watched him closely now and saw him visibly wince a few moments later. She was immediately concerned at what might have made him wince, but stayed where she was.

"I want nothing more than to do exactly that. But you won't talk to me." He answered simply. It was then that Annie realized that the word "talk" had been the source of the wince.

Annie stood stunned as she read his reply. His mood was all her fault. She had been sentencing him to not only his life of blindness, but she had been forcing him to endure just as much silence as she was in. She knew sound was important to him since he couldn't see any longer. She didn't want to be forcing her silence on to him, but that was exactly what she was doing. She was forcing him to live in silence just as she lived in it.

"Auggie. I'm trying." She replied.

"Are you?" He answered back immediately. As she looked over at him, she saw the tension in his jaw and brows tightly together. He looked up as if trying to locate her in the room, she hated the he wasn't sure. She was standing in the dining room, while his head was tilted in the direction of the kitchen.

She understand what he meant. She was not really trying. She had not attempted speaking to him since they got home over a week ago. She'd even consciously kept her laughs to a minimum. She had told herself in the car as they arrived that she needed to try speaking, if to no one other than him, but she had not actually done it. Now it was, understandably, causing Auggie to be upset.

 **Author's request: I want to bring Dr. McCade back into the story, but I'm not sure how. If you have any ideas, please send them my way.**


	12. Building Bridges

**Author's Note: I know its been a while. I haven't forgot my characters or lost my passion for Covert Affairs in the least. Time is simply not as easy to come by these days for writing. More updates to come as soon as possible. Don't worry friends, I have not forgot you all. Please leave reviews as you read. Not only for me, but for all your favorite fanfiction writers. We writers need the support.**

Chapter Twelve

"Building Bridges"

As the weeks passed, Annie and Auggie began to get into a sort of routine. Annie continued to make excruciatingly slow improvements with regaining her strength and trying to live life in complete silence. She was easily frustrated when she had to sleep in the afternoon because she grew tired much more quickly than she had ever done before. Each morning, she and Auggie ate breakfast together, as they worked on their modified version of sign language. Auggie had mastered fingerspelling pretty well, but everything else was still a struggle for him.

Annie had finally begun talking to Auggie more frequently about a month after leaving the hospital. Watching his suffering had been her undoing. He had been very patient with her, only mentioning her not talking the one time, but she knew she was being unfair to him. He had taken off work all this time and simply lived in the silence Annie's presence provided for him. He did odd jobs for Joan, she knew, but for the most part he stayed with her. He helped her with her daily exercises, finally able to work out a system for doing so with basically only a few touches between them to communicate. They also practiced sign language for hours a day, however they did this separately instead of together because Annie's skills was far more advanced than Auggie's. They did practice side by side though, each engrossed in their own skill levels.

Auggie still grew frustrated with how slow his progress was with the whole task. He worked with a tutor three times a week at the School for the Deaf, but he was still struggling to gain mastery over the basics. However, Annie and Auggie were figuring out how to make it work for them. For Auggie's part, he always made sure he was close to Annie if he needed to sign something to her. It was often inconvenient to always have to take the time to find her in a room, but it was necessary. On the flip side, if Annie wanted to sign to Auggie something that she couldn't say, she would go over and tap his hand. Then he would hold his hands out for her to sign into. It usually took a few tries for the message to go through, but in truth it was getting better for both of them. Auggie would sign to Annie and she would verbalize about half the time now, but always signed to him as well.

Annie was patient with him. She understood that he was struggling to learn even rudimentary signs, but the fact that he was trying meant the world to her. They were now rarely very far from one another. They would each warn the other if they were leaving the room for a long period of time or if on the rare occasion Auggie left the apartment. They still used their phones or email to communicate longer messages, but they used this much less frequently than before they began learning sign language.

Now Auggie felt a new connection with Annie that he had never had before. Feeling her hands under his, communicating effortlessly with him was amazing. The smoothness of her hands under his, the stream of the words that flowed from her hands into his seemed almost natural for her. Even if he didn't always understand what she said, the level of intimacy between them in these moments were special to him. At times he had to have her repeat things, but at least "again" was a sign he knew (and used often). He was glad to not have to constantly have a piece of technology between them. He was struggling to learn sign language, but she showed him new things every day and each day they seemed to be able to communicate just a little better.

Auggie had been wanting to ask Annie an important question for quite some time now. That evening, as they sat on the couch together, he finally mustered the courage to do so.

He placed his hand on her shoulder, their usual signal that he had something to ask her.

"I have a question," he signed to her, signing each word instead of abbreviating the sentence as American Sign Language grammar would have done. His tutor had thought it would be best for him use English syntax and focus on learning signs for words instead of trying to learn the whole ASL grammatical structure.

"Yes?" She signed against his open hands

He sat for a moment, unsure if he knew all of the signs for the question he wanted to ask. He knew he didn't know most of the words, but he would just have to do the best he could.

"Annie," he began using the name sign for her she had taught him the week before. "Will you learn Braille?" he asked, fingerspelling the last word since he didn't know the sign for Braille yet.

Annie sat for a few moments thinking about his question, she sat so long, he signed it again, unsure if she had seen him the first time.

Annie felt in awe of him. She was already amazed by his determination to improve their communication by taking on the incredible challenge of learning sign language, now he was asking her if he could open up his world to her as she had opened hers to him. She felt honor that he wanted her to learn.

"Of course," Annie said aloud, surprising Auggie as he'd expected her to sign to him.

"Are you sure?" he signed to her.

"Yes," she again spoke to him unable to contain her excitement. She had always been mesmerized by his hands as she watched them scroll across the Braille files he was given or along the Braille display as he read the text from his computer, but she had not had the time to learn Braille nor had she presumed it would be as easy for her as most language came to her. Braille wasn't a language, it was a way of expressing English. From her understanding, less than 10 percent of blind adults used Braille now; it was a staggering statistic to her and one she had heard Auggie speak about numerous times.

For the first time in what seemed like months, Annie saw a genuine smile on Auggie's face. She was glad to see him happy, if just for a few moments. She brought their heads together and touched his forehead to her own in one of their favorite positions. Holding each other this way had been a way for them to connect when she was so lost and confused by everything in the hospital. No words or gestures had been needed then, they had just needed to be with each other. She hadn't had the strength then to barely look up at him, but knowing he was there had got her through what turned out to be the hardest challenge of her life. She was only just now, a month and a half later, beginning to get the sense that things could be okay again.

"We should add Braille lessons into our day," Auggie signed incorrectly, but Annie got to message.

"Great!" Annie exclaimed a bit louder than she would have if she could have heard herself.

Auggie was glad to hear the enthusiasm in her voice, he knew it was genuine. Her voice now never showed any falseness to it. His guess was that since she couldn't hear it, it was harder for her to fake emotions as people often did. It was purely what she was feeling and right now, she truly seemed excited about the possibility of being able to communicate with him through Braille. He had to admit that his reasons for wanting her to learn were a bit selfish. He just didn't want to feel inadequate to communicate with her all the time. With sign language, he constantly felt like she was having to communicate slower with him, dumbing things down into smaller terms or signs for him to understand. He didn't want that to be the only way they could communicate. Asking her to consistently speak when he knew she wasn't comfortable with it was something he avoided. He appreciated anytime he heard her voice now, but didn't depend on it. And he certainly didn't want to constantly have a piece of machinery between them.

If they both knew Braille fluently, they could actually write one another notes, leave the grocery list on the counter and they could both read it. Using Braille wouldn't necessarily help with their everyday conversations, but it would help in other ways. He also was glad it was something he already knew. He could teach her something instead of being the constant student between them. While she was learning sign language as well, it was obvious that they were on completely different playing fields.

Annie and Auggie almost immediately incorporated Braille lessons into their daily routine. Annie was surprised at first at how simple the concept seemed for Braille, but after learning the first twenty six letters of the alphabet and trying to learn grade 2 Braille, she began to struggle significantly. The cells for words, prefixes, suffixes, and other parts of words began blurring together as she tried to master it. There didn't seem to be a pattern to the way Braille cells were made as they represented things in grade 2. In grade 1 she had quickly picked up on the pattern and been able to memorize the cells that way. After the first two weeks, she still only had the first twenty six letters of the alphabet mastered.

Auggie was surprised at how much he enjoyed teaching her "his" language. He had never tried to teach someone Braille before-mainly because no one had ever expressed an interest in learning, but now, he found that he almost relished in thinking about each day's lesson. He tried to come up with little games for them to do, had daily word challenges for Annie to complete, and made a matching activity for her to try each day using objects around their apartment.

"You are improving," Auggie signed to her at the end of their 10th lesson. She was getting faster at reading grade 1, even though grade 2 was still difficult for her.

"I'm still not very fast," Annie verbalized to him from across the breakfast bar. It was now habit for him to sign to her and her to verbalize most of the answers, even though she also signed the answers whether they were close enough for him to feel them or not. They both found it beneficial for him if she signed as much to him as she could. So if at all possible, she signed into his hands. This way he was able to learn signs he didn't know and practice his receptive skills that otherwise he wasn't able to practice since she was the only deaf person he knew. At times this made conversations stop completely if he didn't know a sign she used and she took a break from their conversation to explain it, but neither of them minded these pauses.

"That's okay, you're learning. That's what matters to me. No one has ever wanted to learn this for me," Auggie signed to her the best he could, he still often grew frustrated with using sign language. He was never positive his messages were clear or that he was doing signs correctly. She corrected him often, but he still felt uncertain much of the time.

"You're learning my language; it's only fair that I learn yours, I know it has been difficult for you. You should know you're doing a very good job with signing. I know you aren't always sure if you are signing correctly. I'll tell you when you aren't though," Annie told him quietly. She was getting better about being able to control the volume she spoke with.

"I need someone else to practice with," Auggie told her after a moment of trying to remember how to sign practice.

"We don't know many people who know sign language," Annie both signed and voiced to him as they sat on the couch. It was easier for them to communicate if they were near each other. Their phones were also always near them as well. They had both found that if they couldn't be in touching range of each other that they both at least wanted their phones next to them so they could communicate with each other in that way.

Even as the communication bridge was being gaped, Auggie worried that he would never truly be good enough with sign language to be enough for her. It frustrated him that he couldn't see her as she needed him to. Of course, she would never tell him this, but he knew it would be so much easier for her to just be able to sign across to the room to him that she was going to take a nap instead of having to walk around the apartment wherever he was to tell him. It was at least easier that she would talk to him some. But still he knew this was challenging for her.

One evening after she had gone to bed, Auggie had a thought. He wasn't sure it would work, but he thought it was worth a try anyway. After sending the email, he felt hopeful that might finally have a viable solution for them.


	13. An Irreplaceable Ally

**Author's Note: Here's the next chapter for this story. I think I have one or two more stories to update before they're all updated after my latest writing break. I hope you all enjoy it. Sandysea17, I think you'll be happy with this chapter. For those reviewing, thank you!**

Chapter Thirteen

"An Irreplaceable Ally"

Dr. Miles McCabe rubbed his shoulder as he circled his neck around slowly to attempt relaxing his tense muscles just a little. They were on the jet headed back to DC from Oregon. It had been a particularly exhausting case this week. The team had lost three patients, but finally found the disease responsible before the other ten patients died from it as well. He was glad to finally have a couple days off. He knew he would have to clean his apartment when they arrived back in DC, but he leaned back and closed his eyes, wishing the mounting to-do list in his mind would come to halt so he could relax on the way home.

After about an hour of restless sleep, he decided to give up on the pretenses of getting any sleep and brought out his laptop to check his email. Scrolling through the emails, he began to delete and categorize the list hoping to at least make it more manageable when he was home to deal with the ones that needed any amount of his attention. Nothing really caught his eye until he reached the emails from earlier in the week.

He had promised them that he would stay in touch with them, but quite frankly he had just been too busy the last month and a half to even give them a call. Now seeing Auggie Anderson's name in his inbox his stomach rolled, hoping Annie wasn't still having complications from the meningitis, he quickly opened the email. He believed they could make it work somehow. Despite all the odds against them, he wanted them to fight for the obvious love they held for one another.

After opening the email, he read through it,

 _Dr. McCabe,_

 _It's Auggie Anderson, I'm not sure if you remember me. We met at Georgetown University Hospital when Annie Walker was your patient about two months ago. I hope this email finds you well. I know this might sound weird, but you said if we ever needed anything to contact you. Therefore, I'm doing just that._

 _Annie and I have been going to the School for the Deaf to learn sign language three times a week. She is gifted with languages and is picking it up quite quickly it seems. I, however, have not had such luck. I'm struggling, to be frank._

 _I wondered if you might have any ideas on how I can learn this. Books and videos don't work so well for me. And the three hours of one-on-one time at the school just aren't enough._

 _Sincerely,_

 _August Anderson_

Miles was sympathetic to Auggie's problem. It was indeed a challenge for a blind man to learn sign language. Not impossible, but quite challenging nonetheless. He needed someone who could show him the signs in a tactile way. As Auggie had pointed out, he couldn't just read a book or watch a video to learn it. An idea struck him as he excitedly emailed back.

* * *

Auggie had given up on hearing from Dr. McCabe after the fifth day without a reply. He knew it was a long shot. He had hoped against all odds that the doctor had meant it when he said to contact him if they needed anything.

Now he was back to the drawing board on how he could realistically improve his signing so that he could effectively communicate with his girlfriend. Danielle had taken a three week class at a local community college and now knew more than he did. He was grateful to her for Annie's sake, but he was also jealous of her that she could just go to a couple classes and pick up more than he had in almost six weeks of thrice weekly sessions with supposed experts.

At the moment, Danielle and Annie were out shopping. He had stayed back to do a project for Joan, which had now been completed for two hours. Annie and Danielle weren't scheduled to be back for several more hours and that was if they stayed with their plans. As he waited for their return he couldn't help but think about him and Annie's communication problems. It had got a lot better the last couple weeks, especially now that Annie would verbalize her answers to him occasionally. But even that wasn't consistent and she wouldn't say a word outside of their apartment or if anyone else was there.

Oh one hand, he was honored to be the only person she trusted to hear the voice she could no longer hear herself, but it also meant, it was his responsibility to help Annie navigate the world outside their apartment. When people asked her questions, needed her order at restaurants, or simply had to give her information about a purchase. They rarely went anywhere as a result, but at times, they both felt cabin fever setting in.

He remembered one evening at Allen's Tavern, Annie's first time there since getting sick. Many of their friends from the CIA were there and invited Annie and Auggie to join them at their table. Auggie wasn't sure, but Annie pulled him over.

It immediately became evident that neither of them could keep up with the conversations of the table, despite knowing everyone there. Auggie quickly became overwhelmed with trying to remember everyone's voice and follow who they were talking to. Then trying to keep Annie in the loop by interrupting-quite poorly-what was being said to her and around her. He knew she would want to know what everyone said, but constantly signing was a struggle for him. She didn't ask him much, but she did respond through him, which was frustrating as well. He kept making mistakes in interrupting her signs and he was certain he wasn't using all the correct signs. He tried to finger spell words he didn't know signs for, but his fingers just weren't used to spelling out words for such a long time period.

Eventually, Annie told him he could stop, but he knew this would mean she would hardly be communicated with as a result. Some of their old friends tried to continue communicating with her, making up their own signs or writing things down, but after a few minutes the novelty wore off and they all went to conversations between themselves.

By the time they got home later, Auggie wanted to talk about what had happened, but Annie just said "Its fine. I'm tired. Let's go to bed." And that was that. They went to bed and it wasn't discussed.

The next morning while eating breakfast, Annie seemed her normal self. Auggie didn't want to shake her good mood by bringing up complicated topics. Days later he regretted not talking it over with her. They needed to communicate better. They were each bottling things up because it was easier and they feared miscommunications.

Now, as he sat at the kitchen counter with his laptop, he decided to try something new during his sign language practice. As he practiced each sign, phrase, or sentence he sat in front of his laptop, preforming each motion directly in front of his laptop, allowing his laptop's camera to record the practice session. He thought it would be good to show his tutor or Annie his progress. He hoped they would be able to give him feedback on what he might be doing correctly or incorrectly.

Auggie worked longer than usual practicing the language he desperately needed to master. Once he was finished he checked his email to see if Joan had any other work for him to do. After checking his work email, he decided to check his personal email just so he could be finished with all of his computer tasks and focus on Annie when she arrived home.

To his surprise, there was a reply from one Dr. Miles McCabe

 _Dear Auggie,_

 _It's great to hear from you! How is Annie doing? I know this has been a huge adjustment for both of you. I will be back in DC in a few hours. I have a few ideas on ways to help you learn quicker and be able to practice more._

 _Can we meet up somewhere to discuss my ideas this weekend?_

 _Your Friend,_

 _Dr. McCabe_

Auggie couldn't believe his luck. Of course, Dr. McCabe would answer him, if nothing else he had expected a message saying he was too busy, he hadn't expected him to want to meet up.

Auggie responded to the email, letting Dr. McCabe know that his schedule was wide open this weekend. He never knew how Annie would feel from day to day, so they rarely made plans of any kind. She had been having more good days than bad lately, but she still grew tired easily and continued to have trouble with walking or even standing for long periods of time. Auggie had noticed that her walk was much slower and more labored, like she wore weights on her feet, than it had been before she got sick. It had been almost two months since she was first hospitalized, but the improvements were slow.

After sending the email, Auggie began to grow excited about seeing what suggestions Dr. McCabe might be able to offer him.

* * *

Miles couldn't believe his luck, of course, he would get home after being away for several weeks, dealing with back to back cases, to find out that his landlord had been trying to get a hold of him. Apparently, there had been a small fire in the apartment next to his and there had been significant damage to his apartment. The landlord told him it would be at least a couple weeks before he could live there again. For now, they suggested he find a friend or family member to stay with until the damages could be taken care of.

Sighing, he went inside his apartment and grabbed a pile of fresh clothes, some basic toiletries, and his gadgets. Then he turned back around and headed back out the door. He hailed a cab to the nearest hotel. Right now, he just needed sleep. He would figure out where he would be staying later.

* * *

Auggie couldn't wait for Annie to get home to tell her about Dr. McCabe coming to see him this weekend. He hoped it would go as smoothly and be as helpful as he was imagining that it would be. He didn't want to get his expectations up, but at the same time, he wanted something to look forward to-something good to finally come from this whole mess.


End file.
